Finding Comfort
by batwheelsz350
Summary: Early on in the League, the team gets acclimated with one another while the world around them changes. References to Knightfall as well. Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, and this is just being done for fun so don't sue please.
1. Chapter 1: Prologue - Diana's log

I've been in the League for almost eleven months now. Things still happen around me that I do not yet fully understand. My fellow warriors have such different personalities that sometimes I find myself astounded as to how well we seem to get along aboard this magnificent creation of a space station. Some members have begun almost lovingly referring to it as the Watchtower. I have to admit that I agree with that title. It does fit as the Earth's greatest heroes watch over our world for any signs where help is needed. Even though initially hesitant due to my upbringing, I have actually come to find that some men are not as bad as my mother and fellow sisters had described. I have even come to think of some of my male teammates as friends over the course of our time together. It makes me believe that perhaps times have truly changed in Man's world for the better. Although there are still some edges of it in need of smoothing, I feel that in time, perhaps Man's world will be able to find the peace that has been carried out on Themyscria for centuries. Any time I find myself questioning the progress of Man's world, I need only think of my teammates to quiet those doubts.

I've attempted to bond with a fellow sister on our team in Shayera Hol, also known as Hawkgirl. She truly is a warrior not so unlike my sisters back home, but in many ways still completely different. Shayera actually seems to prefer "hanging out with the boys" over anything else. I simply do not understand this. There is no use for men in my opinion aside from breeding if that is deemed necessary. Being immortal, I find that as not needed at all. However Shayera and Green Lantern seemed to get along well the quickest. Perhaps it is in their militant training where they have found common ground. Shayera also while having a sharp and cunning mind is very quick to join in battle. Sometimes I wonder if she needs that conflict to be truly happy. Coming from a planet with extensive technology, she is an impressive sight with her wings and mace. She comes off as an angel with those wings, but can be quite violent, especially with that mace in her hands. I gladly fight next to such a warrior.

Green Lantern is someone that I have come to slowly respect over the course of time. It is not a secret that our initial introductory meeting was not of the best that it could've been. I was greatly insulted by his belief that my lacking experience as a hero made me something of a liability. I thought him merely a foolish brute of a man, just as mother had described men as being. That they ultimately believed women to be inferior creatures not meant for battle. Perhaps a part of John Stewart did believe that, but as is my goal with the rest of the world, his perception was quickly altered by my showing him that I was certainly no liability, but in fact a very powerful asset for the team. Eventually his militant side showed me that he was too a quality hero with much to offer the world. He did after all carry the most powerful weapon in the world with the Green Lantern ring, able to create anything based off of thought to use for the purpose of justice and peace. One cannot help but to respect that.

Respect. This is something that the next member of our team continually seems to deny himself of. Flash seems to be a womanizing loud mouth that tends to speak before he thinks. At least I would hope that is the case, for if he actually thinks some of the things he says is appropriate, and then I should strike him down immediately. However each and every time that I begin to become frustrated with him to the point of wanting to beat him senseless, he seems to do something that makes me believe he just needs to grow up a little bit more and become a mature man. Right now he is like a juvenile sibling, only he keeps attempting to gain the attention of myself and Shayera, along with any other woman he comes across that seems endearing to him at that moment. The man also seems to have an insatiable appetite. He claims his metabolism is faster than he can run, and after some time, I find myself beginning to believe him. I swear to all the Gods that man always is eating, and he is the scrawniest of us all in the League.

Some of my teammates steer away from our Martian friend J'onn. His ability to read minds and thoughts is troublesome to some, believing it to be an invasion of privacy. I don't mind at all as I have nothing to hide. In fact, I find myself gravitating more towards J'onn simply because he is so in tuned to what is happening around us. I've yet to hear him say something that has caused any turmoil between himself and others. That is why when I found that he had been held captive by humans for simply coming to Earth in order to warn us of the impending invasion, I had become quite infuriated. J'onn however was the one to calm me, saying that humans simply fear what they do not understand and passing it off as though it were just a bump in the road. Such a stoic person, and so patient I find J'onn to be. Those qualities I find myself wanting to work on improving within myself. Quickly J'onn has become a confidant for myself. Flash likened him to a shrink. Another unfamiliar term that I found myself having to research to understand as a slang term used to refer to a psychiatrist. Man's world has so many different forms of doctors to deal with a vast list of ailments. It truly makes me wonder about all that man's world has been through that my people have missed, and I find myself at times feeling as though I am an outsider or intruder to this world. Perhaps that is why J'onn and I get along so well.

Another teammate that I had found myself becoming increasingly close to was Kal El, the man from Krypton. Another alien on this planet, but unlike J'onn and Shayera, Kal has lived here on Earth since he was a very small child. I don't understand the term that some of the others are referring to when they call him "boy scout". Kal is certainly not the most prepared of us all. He is incredibly easy to approach, and that is surprising considering how strong he seems to be. Superman as the world calls him is seemingly idolized by the world. I could certainly see why upon first glance. The man is truly a marvel, and always seems to hold true to his convictions. I found myself growing very close to this fellow super powered warrior. He was attractive in the sense of the males of the world. I found myself stopping a few times to view him in battle as I admit I was awestruck with his various powers and immense strength. Quickly a strong bond formed between us. Even the world seemed to notice as various news sites printed reports of Kal and I being intimate together. I found myself wondering why they would make up such stories. Was it because our armor seemed to match in color? Or perhaps because we are the strongest of the team? I hadn't given to much thought to this as I simply believe any feelings between myself and another is simply no one else's business. Why humans in man's world are so obsessed with us is still somewhat of a mystery. I can understand writing of our battles, but why is our personal life so intriguing to the world? I've asked Kal, but he just shrugs his shoulders and keeps about as though these stories never were printed.

After the first crisis where we all teamed together, Kal seemed intrigued with me, and I admit that I felt the same way towards him. It wasn't long after that where we found ourselves flying together high in the sky looking for any trouble where our assistance would be needed. It was then that I looked in his eyes and could see the attraction to me in them. When we stopped above the clouds and shared a kiss, I would be lying if I said that it wasn't a magical moment shared between us. We attempted to find time over the course of the next few months to see what feelings were between us. With our work as heroes taking up most of the time, we were limited to only a handful of dates. It was on the fourth date where I noticed a change in Kal's demeanor towards me. He wasn't attempting to increase any intimacy between us. There was the time where I thought we would have so much more time together when it was agreed that we should team up and form what is now called the Justice League. When the space station was being constructed, I had spent many more hours working alongside Kal. There were many times where it was just the two of us, and that is when I noticed the change. However to my surprise I also wasn't upset by it. Two months after the space station's completion, I came to realize that Kal had become attracted to another on Earth. He was awkward in trying to explain this to me, thinking that I would be upset, but he seemed to relax when I wasn't. I was honestly happy for Kal. We were still close friends, perhaps the best of friends after that, and I am happy with that.

Lastly, the part time member of our team. I do not know why we have allowed him to be a part of the League. He is truly a coward if you were to ask me. Always being mysterious and lurking in the shadows, and he is so infuriating with his immense arrogance and paranoia. He always believes that his way is the best route and therefore the only one that should be taken. And the rest of the League cowers behind this mere man's glare at them whenever they do question his choices. I truly do not like being sent on missions with Batman because of his arrogance for the most part. I've also come to find that he has no powers to rely upon aside from his gadgets. I cannot believe for a second that he was able to somehow best Kal in a bar before, but Kal admitted as much to me when I questioned why Batman was permitted to be a part of the team. His glares are almost as infuriating as his arrogance. A simple look does nothing to instill fear inside of me. I have not trained with the best Themyscria has to offer to be frightened by a mere mortal man. If it were my choice I would let him have his precious Gotham City, and be rid of him. His mandate that Meta's remain out of his city is perhaps the most ignorant thought to come from his mind yet.

I once spent some time during a slow monitor shift looking up the worst of the villains that Batman has had to face. Kal once told me that the Joker was by far the worst villain to have come from Gotham. My research left me with the mindset that this villain had almost bested Batman multiple times in the past, and yet he had no powers himself either to speak of. Kal also told me that he believed the Joker was perhaps the worst we would have to face. A killer in every sense of the word. There is no rhyme or reason why this criminal creates such chaos. I personally cannot wait to meet him and put him in his place. When I'm finished with that mortal, he won't be leaving a jail cell under his own power for quite some time. Sometimes I think that Kal is being extremely generous with his thoughts on Batman's abilities. While I understand that he has fought beside us in previous battles, it was certainly not him that was the one providing the victorious strikes at the end when we've faced some very powerful enemies.

I am not impressed with anything aside from the size of his ego. How one mortal can be so self assured I cannot fathom. I live for the day when I can vehemently prove him wrong. Perhaps that will cause him to pack up his things and leave the true worst of the world to those of us with the power to conquer that evil. And now come to find that he has scheduled various tests and changed the schedule so that he and I would be assigned as teammates for any upcoming missions in the next few months. Is he punishing us because his Gotham sidekick was killed by Joker? Kal informed us all of that when Batman's mood had soured exponentially a week before these tests were scheduled. I believe there is an ulterior motive behind his plans on testing each member of the League, but I have no proof yet to provide before I can voice my thoughts on this. And after putting it off as long as I could, I am now the last one left to go through these exercises that Batman has staged for us. I'm not sure that he will survive this time as he may infuriate me enough to where I will cripple him myself. Stupid mortal.


	2. Chapter 2: Batman's log

It is truly amazing that I find the time to sleep any more. There is so much happening between Batman and Bruce Wayne that I am surprised I haven't joined the insane criminals at Arkham Asylum. Nightwing introduced a new young man to me two nights ago. I am beyond livid with that man, thinking he has some sort of say in whom I choose to train. I had no intention what so ever of permitting another Robin or whatever name works beside me in the dark shadows of this city. Not after losing Jason to the Joker. His death brought me ever closer to crossing the line I walk every night, hoping that I don't slip and fall into the abyss of darkness below me. I've come so close so many times recently, that I am actually fearful of myself and what I could be capable of. Broken bones doesn't seem to be enough anymore to satisfy my rage at times. The criminal elements in my city only seem to become more violent with the amount of time that I have donned the cape and cowl. At least now for the past three years I have the Commissioner on my side. It was helpful when I joined on to save the world before the Justice League was formed. Yet another task to add to my juggling list, trying to keep everything straight and not let anything slip. Today is about getting everything in order.

First line of business: Tim Drake. After two nights of thinking about it, I admit that I have to do something. The boy is bright, having figured out both Dick's and my secret identities. All from viewing Dick showing off with a quadruple somersault while apprehending the Penguin. I've always told Dick that he needed to keep from showing off his acrobatic skills, and Tim is now the reason why. Luckily for Dick though, Tim seems to idolize the Batman and Robin identities. I've pulled up all the information I could on the boy, and it is saddening to find out about the demise of his mother and the critical condition of his father being in a coma. Perhaps that created the soft spot I feel, which helped to support my decision to allow Tim into the fold. I can't be certain at this point. He will start by training with Alfred in the beginning. My faithful butler and surrogate father figure knows nearly as much as I do since he traveled with me all that time while I was growing up. If he'd thought for an instant that the Batman would be what was created from all that, I doubt he would have allowed me to travel and train all those years. Once Alfred gives his approval of Tim's training, Nightwing will take over from there. Dick certainly owes me one for even bringing this boy to me in the first place. If Tim makes it through Dick's training regimen, then I will have to take over and train him for his final preparations to begin patrolling at night. I'm also going to design a more protective Robin suit, and I will be watching the entire time for any signs that he acts like a loose cannon and does not follow instructions. I'm not going to lose another young life to the likes of someone like the Joker again. Losing Jason was almost enough to bring me crashing into insanity.

Second line of business: Playboy fop. I truly hate the persona of Bruce Wayne. It is a struggle at times to act so ignorant all the time. The women that I force myself to be with are utter disappointments. They are either absolute gold diggers looking to cash in by sweeping Bruce off his feet and into marriage, or they are attempting to become pregnant and have an 18 year long lottery ticket. The latter is the reason why I find ways to take them home and have them so inebriated that they either pass out or surely cannot remember what they did, if anything at all. Some ruffled bed sheets for them to wake up to in the morning, having them believing that they may have scored on a gold mine actually brings a smile to my face at times. Fools. I almost wish I could be there to see the disappointment on their faces when the pregnancy tests come back negative time and time again. This mode of operation actually depresses me more sometimes than dealing with the criminal element. I've come now to accept that happiness is a fantasy not meant for myself. It's not for the Batman or the Playboy fop either. I swear at times I deserve an Oscar for my performances at showing how _happy_ Bruce Wayne is. I will have to find out the next social event Bruce Wayne is supposed to attend from Alfred in the morning. I'd almost kill for someone competent to have an actual conversation with at these events in place of the air heads that I bring along at my side. My fear is that if they are somewhat intelligent, then what would stop them from being able to put the pieces together about my actual late night activities. Perhaps this is part of the price I have to pay in order to honor my parent's legacy.

At least Wayne Enterprises doesn't require too much of my attention. Lucius Fox is a wonderful man that I am honestly privileged to have met and employ. The business would most likely have fallen to some other company such as Lex Corp if not for that man. I can only spend so many hours in the day focusing on the ins and outs of what goes on here, and having Lucius here allows me to let some precious time slide so that I can stay sharp for my other activities. I do however maintain a close eye on the WayneTech portion of the company. Any new technology to help me in my mission that I can gather from here I gladly take without hesitation. That's one of the perks of being the owner of a multi-billion dollar company I suppose.

The last piece of new business I have to focus on is the Justice League. Once again, my time is limited with just how much I can give to protect the world. During the next staff meeting I'm going to suggest pushing them back to every other week. Either that or I'll start attending only half of the meetings. There cannot be that much to report on which would justify a weekly meeting between seven people. I designed the space station myself, and I know that it runs basically on its own. Hell, I even powered it utilizing solar panels to make it self sufficient in at least that area so I wouldn't have to worry about it. Water on the station is the only true challenge, but even that I've designed to be as efficient as possible. Any updates necessary I wouldn't trust most of the League to handle, but the first person that refers to me as the Watchtower handyman, I'm going to punish and punish severely. The last time someone even questioned my actions it was Flash. Because of him I made sure they each had a full and detailed code of conduct handbook provided to them the very next morning, just to prove a point that I will not tolerate any ignorance. It didn't help in Flash's cause when on the cover was his lightning bolt symbol. I'd wager that any training sessions for him became quite uncomfortable for the next few weeks. I gave them all just one week before I brought up the handbook for a vote. I didn't want them to take the time to go through it thoroughly as I'd placed some various protocols and exemptions in it for certain appearances that were only affronted to part time League members such as myself. Even so I was surprised that there was no opposition in preventing the handbook from ratification. I doubt any of them even read through the entire 346 pages. Well, except perhaps J'onn did judging from the look he gave me before issuing his vote. He probably wondered where I found the time to write the damn thing in the first place. I chuckled internally at his expression. Insomnia at times can be beneficial. Just trying to protect Gotham took so much of my time already before this that I honestly can't fathom why I even took on a part time role within the League. Actually saying that, I'm lying to myself. Of course I know why I remained involved. Another threat against the world and my city just joined forces to create an all powerful army that would likely be completely unstoppable if they so chose to go that route. I cannot stand by and let that possibility come to fruition. So I decided to stay onboard and study each and every member. Everyone has a weakness that can be exploited if necessary.

This brings me to my next point, Protocol Rogue. I chose to shadow each member for approximately one month and put them through tests to discover more information about what each individual can do. Also I looked for any weaknesses to exploit if the time were to ever become necessary. As I had already known Clark beforehand, I started with him. The man is about as close to Godlike as I've seen. He is almost invulnerable with no outside interference to help you against him. It didn't take me long to discover that his strength is derived from our planet's yellow sun. I'd noticed after some battles that he would travel to the outer atmosphere and recharge his batteries so to speak, and when he returned he looked as though he hadn't even been in a battle. His main foe Luthor actually provided me with Clark's weaknesses. Perhaps I should thank him. The implosion of Clark's home planet allowed debris to float through space. Naturally some of it followed in the wake of Clark's ship to Earth. There is a low level of radiation, and Luthor actually stumbled on to the fact that it greatly weakens Superman. If exposed to it for a lengthy period of time, the poisonous radiation to him could actually prove to be fatal. I've spent the majority of my fop vacation time since then seeking out pieces of what has been called Kryptonite. I also discovered that Superman's x-ray vision is impaired by lead. He simply can't see through it. Therefore I designed my cowl with a lead lining to prevent any other possible Kryptonians from peaking and stealing away my secret identity. He still hasn't figured out how I was able to deduce his secret as Clark Kent so quickly, and I refuse to tell him. I like that it gives him an uneasiness about me where he actually takes me seriously as a potential threat. I do not regret making him feel that way one bit. I will be a threat to him if he ever crosses the line that has been set for any hero of Earth, even the almighty Superman.


	3. Chapter 3: Monitor Duty

Batman leapt out of the cockpit of his Batwing, and began striding purposefully through the hanger bay. He had little time to deal with yet another League meeting, and his patience was already paper thin. Earlier that day, Lucius had informed him of a law suit filed against the company. Just based upon the information that was supplied to the Wayne Enterprises lawyers, there had to be some form of information leak going on. The law suit in of itself was nothing more than a ploy to distract what was going on behind the scenes. Bruce was working on a few leads as to whom the leak was when Alfred had alerted him of the fact that he was going to be pressed for time to make it to the League meeting on time. Growling in response, he followed his butler to the Batwing and departed for yet another useless meeting.

The long flight up to the Watchtower gave Bruce's mind time to wander about, as he began to think about how he could shorten the time it took to arrive aboard the Watchtower. Also, even being a billionaire, the cost of fuel consumed by the Javelins and the Batwing was pricey, and Bruce's funding wasn't without end. There had to be a more efficient and cost effective way. He switched the Batwing onto auto pilot pulled out a sketch pad as his mind began concocting various different methods of travel. Perhaps picking J'onn's or Shayera's minds to utilize alien technology would bear some fruit. He would reach out to J'onn telepathically during the meeting when Superman began the useless portion where he brought up his thoughts on how to improve the Watchtower. Who did Clark think he was trying to come up with changes to make? Did Clark think he had Bruce's approval on an open checkbook policy? The only idea that Bruce even gave merit to came from Wonder Woman, and that was to add an Arboretum. It had dual benefits where it gave the Leaguers a place to escape the metallic confines for a bit, and it would help aid in the creation of oxygen within the Watchtower. Bruce had to admit that plants in the Watchtower wasn't too costly of an item to add, so he acquiesced to this suggestion.

Bruce had come up with at least five plausible options for traveling between Earth's surface and the Watchtower by the time he had landed. He placed the sketch pad down, leaving it inside the Batwing. Until he had decided on the best option, his ideas were not to be shared with anyone. Batman stormed through the Watchtower hallways, his patience growing ever thinner with each step he took until he reached the conference room. When the doors slid open, he was surprised to find only Wonder Woman there waiting on the others to arrive. "Princess." Batman greeted her as he trudged over to his seat next to hers and sat down. She glared at him in response. Batman chalked that up to the first of his strikes on getting under Diana's skin.

She looked back down at some papers set on the table in front of her. "Batman." She responded in a harsh yet quiet tone of voice. She grabbed the papers, leaned back in her chair for more of a relaxed position, and she crossed her legs before continuing in a less hostile tone of voice. It was still a tone that indicated she really didn't care, but was just establishing some interruption of the quietness that would otherwise be there. "You're early this evening. Normally there is a wager between the rest on who they believe will arrive last, you or Flash."

"Always keep them guessing, Princess." Batman replied. "I don't want anyone getting too comfortable thinking I have some sort of pattern."

She actually chuckled at that response. It wasn't meant to be a funny comment, but he couldn't help but to smirk at her response. Soon J'onn entered the room followed swiftly be a still talking Superman. Then Shayera and John arrived before finally Flash came running in with only seconds to spare before he could be considered late. There would be no betting today, Batman thought to himself. He then groaned internally as Superman began the meeting. Batman kept his eye on the clock as time passed by. Clark was infuriating him to no end with this pointless meeting. Batman was gripping the arm rests on his chair tightly. Wonder Woman glanced over as she heard the leather straining under Batman's grip. She shook her head slightly and returned her attention to Superman. After twenty minutes of listening to Superman, Batman couldn't take any more, and reached out to J'onn telepathically. He went over the five options he had come up with, and J'onn added some information to one of Bruce's ideas. It was quite helpful, and actually would make Bruce's idea possible. This would create a transportation method that could cut down travel time exponentially. Batman would just need to have a test subject to use as a guinea pig for the initial trial run. He looked around the table. Clark came to mind first, but that was only because of how annoyed Batman was with him at that moment. Using an invulnerable alien wouldn't help him with knowing that a normal human could make the trip without harm coming upon them. Batman then came upon a fidgeting Flash sitting across from him next. Perfect was the only word that came to mind for Batman. He would apply the technology J'onn had shown him just now and build a teleportation unit aboard the Watchtower. He also had designs on creating another platform that would control and offset any unauthorized teleportation to the Batcave, lest he willingly give up his secret identity. That was simply not an option. It was bad enough that Superman already had attained such information, but that was before Batman had determined the Kryptonian had x-ray vision. Back then Batman hadn't been afforded the proper time to research his target, but now he had that precious time to protect himself from losing that critical piece of information. He couldn't let anyone in on such information for the sake of not only himself but Alfred, Dick, Barbara, and now Tim.

As the meeting was finally coming to an excruciating end, Batman cleared his throat and raised his hand to gain the necessary attention to himself. "I have two items to address before we adjourn." Batman started. "First and foremost, I will be working with J'onn on creating a teleportation system to help expedite the travel time to the Earth's surface. Secondly, I would like to suggest that these League meetings be set to every other week unless something catastrophic is occurring. I don't have time to permit coming up here for a random status meeting every week."

Everyone looked at Batman with questioning glares. Wonder Woman's seemed to hold the most contempt. "Why do you think you are so special that it is just your time that is being taken up?" She asked. "You are not the only one that has a life outside of the League. Or is it something else that gives you reason to need more time? Perhaps you cannot keep up with the rest of us?"

Batman stood and turned towards Diana; shooting her a fierce glare. One that none of them had seen before from the Dark Knight. Batman was grinding his teeth, but before he could respond, J'onn chimed in. "I do not believe that was appropriate Diana. Batman does make a valid point in that these meetings are unnecessary unless something truly important is needing discussed. Such things as supplies can be handled every other week, and there would not be that much difference. I move that we vote to enact this request and make it an official policy."

"Seconded." Flash chimed in. The less boring meetings the better for the speedster.

A vote took place and only Wonder Woman was against. She believed the meetings could be handled differently, but didn't think they were unimportant in the least. The vote however being basically unanimous broke no room to argue for a recount, and the precedent was now set. With that resolved, Superman adjourned the meeting and the members began to disperse.

Batman was still red hot with anger at Diana's verbal attack on him and his abilities. Just because he was not a Meta didn't give her or anyone the right to question his motives. If only she knew how much Bruce Wayne and Batman had on their respective plates, she might then have an understanding. In fact he believed that no one; Meta or not could maintain the schedule that he was forced to keep. He waited until Diana and he were the last ones in the room before he grabbed her arm to get her attention. Sure with her strength she could easily rip her arm away and just as likely rip his from his shoulder socket in the same motion, but right now he didn't care. Batman seethed through his still clenched teeth. "I don't know what your problem is with me, but I advise you to get….over it."

Diana looked down at her arm where Batman's hand still had hold of it. She was surprised that this mortal had the nerve to lay a hand on her. She then looked directly into the lenses of his cowl. "You don't tell me what to do little man." She fiercely returned while poking him in the chest. "I am an Amazon and a warrior, and I will not tolerate being spoken to like that."

Diana then stopped poking Batman's chest, and grabbed his other arm before beginning to force him back towards a wall where she would pin him into submission. Before Diana knew what had happened though, Batman took his free hand and latched onto her wrist as he twisted his body and pulled her over his shoulder, slamming her to the floor. She was shocked by this, and now no longer questioned that something similar to this could have happened to Kal when he confronted Batman years ago. Her wide open eyes then narrowed in anger, and she was more than ready to begin battling with this mere mortal to show him who was in charge here. She rolled over and pushed herself to her feet, but when she looked up Batman was nowhere to be seen. How did he do that, she questioned to herself. A mortal male shouldn't be able to escape without some form of detection, but there was no sound or sight to indicate he had left the room. Damn that mortal man. He truly needed a lesson taught to him about dealing with Amazons. She huffed and exited the conference room to head to the Monitor Womb so that she could begin her shift.

Diana was truly upset to see that Batman was there already, and acting as though nothing out of the ordinary had occurred only moments before. Such an infuriating man, Diana thought to herself as she watched Batman going over the various monitors. She silently made her way over to him, but it was plain to see that Batman was well aware of her presence just based off of his body language. He became more rigid with each step she took towards him, and when she was close enough that she could practically reach out and touch him, Batman turned to face her in a more defensive stance. His paranoia served him well this time, and caused her to back off from her stance. Batman then focused his attention back onto the monitors, and Diana pulled up next to him so that she too could help monitor things. After a while, he slowly began working on the schematics for his proposed transport module. Diana flipped back and forth between watching the monitors and watching Batman as he worked nonstop. She had to add one thing to her short list of qualities that Batman possessed, and that was his determination to complete the tasks ahead of him. She couldn't help but to have a small sliver of admiration for what Batman does. And he only drank the hot dark liquid with no additions to it at all. If memory served her, it was coffee that he had. In fact, after the first couple of hours, it seemed that Batman basically lived off of it. He had consumed six cups of it, and when Batman left to retrieve cup number seven he brought back a second cup setting it down in front of her before he returned to his seat. Diana looked down at the dark liquid wondering just how she revealed that her curiosity had been exposed to him indicating that she was thinking of trying a cup for herself. She was curious to see what was so special about it. Perhaps this would be a topic to break the silence that had been in the Monitor Womb the entire time. "What is this for?" She asked.

"You were thinking of trying some were you not." Batman asked, but it came off as more of a statement.

"How did you know that?" She asked.

"I have my ways, princess." He answered and flashed a small smirk.

Was this man actually a telepath, she asked herself. And calling her princess again, he had to be doing that because he knew that it bothered her. She decided right then that she was not going to let this mortal get under her skin, and from this point on she would convince her mind into believing that it was a term of endearment towards her. And he was actually smirking at having thrown her off. She decided she would play along and see where that would take her. The man was a mystery to her at this point, and since they were going to be stuck together for a while, she decided to find out all she could and break open the mystery behind this man. She actually allowed a small smile to escape onto her lips with that thought. Although she didn't see it, Batman noticed the smile as well. He was now on high alert as to the Amazon's intentions, and he would have to be extremely careful with her as he believed that she had a high level of intelligence herself, even if she was still naive to the ways of man's world. He couldn't allow that naïve nature cause him to let his guard down.

Batman continued stealing glances at the woman next to him throughout the remainder of Monitor Duty. It was at times like this where he was thankful to have the lenses blocking anyone from seeing where his eyes were actually focused on. He made sure to keep his face and body pointed towards one of the various monitors at all times so as to prevent any possible tell showing what his other agenda was at the time. He was focusing on reading her body language. As time passed by, Batman's observations caused him to conclude that Wonder Woman's patience would only stretch so far, and she seemed antsy for a battle each time the monitors beeped to draw her attention to any possible danger. She certainly wasn't as anxious for battle as Shayera, but definitely didn't seem the type to shy away from confrontation either.

As the night wore on, Batman's attention slowly turned over to his city. He would occasionally flip a monitor to local Gotham news, and when that led to only slim results, he eventually began hacking into the police feed and sending it to his cowl so that he could listen in for any potential leads. Joker was on the loose again, and it was only a matter of time before he would make his presence known to the city once again. With the corruption of the Arkham intern Harleen Quinzel, the Joker had become even more dangerous. Quinzel had finally been caught helping Joker escape the confines of his cell, and was locked away herself, but that only seemed to add to the fuel of her desire to be with the Joker. She eventually escaped herself and had proven successful in breaking the Joker out time and time again as she was dressed up in a skimpy jester outfit wearing face paint, and calling herself Harley Quinn. Batman had researched her and found that she was a brilliant mind, but obviously delusional with a fixated obsession on one man in particular. Breaking Joker out was easy enough for her as she had utilized her gymnastics training and knowledge of Arkham's inner workings to the fullest. With the pair out on the streets yet again, Batman would have to be careful that he reviewed all of his surroundings before attacking and sending the clown back where he belonged. Batman almost hoped that the Joker would fight back so that he would have reason enough to put the lunatic back in a full body cast. The months afterwards where Joker was bedridden were some of the quietest for the city. Batman could then focus his efforts more on lower levels scum and the mobsters.

Going over some information on the clown had caught Diana's eye. "I take it that is the Joker you're researching?" She asked as she rolled her chair next to him. "He doesn't look so dangerous."

"Looks can be deceiving Princess." Batman responded before focusing again on the reports being fed into his cowl and researching them on the monitor in front of him.

"He is only a man." Diana responded coldly. "He wouldn't even be a challenge for me. I'm an Amazon warrior, and I doubt he could even provide me with a good work out."

Batman ceased in his typing and turned in his chair facing her. He again glared at her in silence for a moment before he responded in a slow, deep, dark voice. "I, a _mere mortal _man, put you on your backside just a few hours ago Princess. I would advise you to take someone such as the Joker more seriously. Your lack of respect for how troublesome he can be would be your own downfall if you were to face him alone."

Diana huffed in response and stood up, getting into a challenging position. Batman stood up and was almost asking her to try attacking him. Diana's chest began rising and falling in excitement at the possibility of a battle with Batman. Hopefully he wouldn't disappoint and be finished within the first minute. Batman then stepped forward, invading her personal space as his nose was only centimeters away from hers, and all his teeth seemed to be showing as he was snarling. Diana suddenly was taken aback by the overall closeness of this man before her. She knew from conversations with the rest of her teammates as well as what she had witnessed in battle that Batman was an intelligent man, but here with her for the second time this night he had shown absolutely no fear towards her. In fact based on her keen senses, she thought there was a chance that Batman believed he could actually defeat her. He certainly wasn't backing down to her based on her royal upbringings either. She was now intrigued by this man. She changed her stance to a more friendly one. "I apologize Batman." She said calmly. "You know this villain more than I, and I shouldn't be quick to judge."

Batman remained extremely close to her. He could feel her breath hitting him on the mouth. When she apologized, Batman took a moment to look into her eyes more deeply. If at all possible she was even more beautiful up close. His eyes traveled over her skin and he realized that she was not wearing any makeup. Her skin was completely flawless. Not even a freckle could be found from his observation. Batman remained in that close proximity with her for over a minute, just observing her and any reaction she had. Her facial expression remained serious, but her demeanor indicated that she was no longer trying to be confrontational. He finally took a step backwards when another tone came from the monitors. Batman quickly realized that it came from the monitor that had been set to Gotham. Without any notification, he immediately turned on his heels and headed for the exit.

"Where are you going?" Wonder Woman asked as she glanced at the monitor.

"Gotham calls Princess." Batman answered over his shoulder as he had reached the doorway.

She briefly looked over what was displayed, and saw that an explosion had occurred in the outer limits of Gotham's borders. She turned and quickly followed after Batman. "Wait!" She called forward to the man walking swiftly down the hall. "I'm coming with you!"

"No you're not!" Batman fired back without even turning his head. "Gotham is my city."

Wonder Woman took flight and headed straight to the Javelin bay. She was determined to go with Batman no matter what he said. When he made it to the bay area, she was standing before him with her arms crossed over her chest, showing a defiant stance. "I don't care who's city it is, you are not going to leave this Watchtower without me." She declared in her regal tone of voice.

"I don't have time for this." Batman grumbled as he moved to get around her. His progress was stopped by a forceful hand contacting his chest. He looked down briefly at the hand before he reached up to grab hold of that arm. Diana quickly maneuvered herself from his ability to grasp her arm, but still maintained between him and the transportation. Batman tossed a smoke bomb to the ground, and within seconds he was engulfed by it. Diana took a step back to help her be able to better view what was happening, but before she knew it she heard the engines come to life on the Batwing. She saw the canopy coming closed, and quickly flew up to it. There was just enough room to slip in underneath before it pinched shut. Batman was beyond irritated. "Get out!" He yelled.

"Look Batman, you can save time by just flying down there now, or you can fight with me until I decide to destroy every plane in here and leave you stranded for hours." Diana stated calmly. "It is your choice."

Batman didn't speak again, and only proceeded with the vertical drop he had decided to initiate. He just now had an unexpected guest. Her persistence was almost a match against his own will power, but time was of the essence here, and she'd caused him to waste enough of it already.


	4. Chapter 4: Welcome to Gotham Princess

Diana was still trying to catch her breath. The level of descent Batman chose to take in dropping through the atmosphere was both exhilarating and made it difficult to keep her breathing normal. She was still feeling a tad dizzy from all the G-forces they had just experienced. She was also amazed that they didn't burn to a crisp. Diana was half expecting the wings to melt away as she watched the metal glow a brilliant bright red. After about ten minutes, Batman finally leveled the Batwing off and Diana could breath normally once again. She looked out of the cockpit and could make out the mass of land next to what had to be the ocean. Diana was shocked that they could already see land when they had only departed the Watchtower ten minutes beforehand. This man was either completely insane or absolutely fearless, and she was curious to discover which it was. "You are certainly not one to shy away from danger, are you Batman?" She asked.

"You have no idea Princess." Batman responded.

"I don't recall that maneuver being provided in the Javelin flight manual." Diana commented.

"That's because it's not." Batman answered. "A teacher never reveals all of his secrets."

"Perhaps then I'll just have to persuade you to teach me that move." Diana countered with a smirk on her face.

Batman must have sensed it, because he too smirked as he grunted in response. He then quickly dropped the Batwing again as he was swiftly approaching the outskirts of Gotham City. Diana looked around at the city when they leveled off once again. It seemed to be a beautiful city, but with a hint of darkness around it. She thought about how it seemed to match with what little she knew of Batman's persona, as he always lurked in the shadows, using that to his advantage just as a hunter would use their surroundings to camouflage them from their targeted prey. She was caught off guard by the bright shining floodlight that formed the symbol of a bat up in the night sky. She never would have thought that the people of this city would have accepted such a dark figure as its hero.

When Batman reached his desired destination he slowed the Batwing down considerably, and opened the canopy. Diana didn't have time to ask what he was doing as Batman quickly inverted the jet and unfastened his harness, allowing him to freefall. Diana's first thought at that moment was that Batman had to be insane to jump out from this altitude, especially when the man had no power of flight to keep him from plummeting to his death. She quickly unlatched her harness and dove out after him. She had to go as fast as she could to gain on him. Batman wasn't even attempting to slow his descent until just when she was almost within reach. She saw Batman as he reached back and grabbed hold of his cape, then it suddenly became rigid allowing him to almost hang glide. Diana had to avert her course quickly to keep from slamming into Batman, and once she was clear of ramming into him she slowed down to follow him where he was going. It was still Batman's city after all, and Diana had never been there before. She watched in awe as Batman controlled where he was heading, and then when he pulled out a grapple gun and fired it at another rooftop. She couldn't believe how quietly he landed on the roof. It was almost as though he controlled sound entirely. Not even his cape seemed to make a noise. There was a man waiting on the rooftop that Batman had led her to, and it was also the source of the floodlight pointed into the night sky. The man turned around almost as though he was expecting to be snuck up on from behind. "Commissioner." Batman spoke first.

"Hello Batman." The commissioner responded. "I'm sure by now you've heard about the explosion on the far east side."

"Yes." Batman answered. "What other information can you tell me about it?"

"Well we have reason to believe that it was the clown and Quinzel again. No casualties, at least not yet." The commissioner answered before looking over at the woman that landed just behind Batman. "I see you've increased the heroes on your team." He walked over and stuck out his hand in greeting. "I'm Commissioner Gordon. It's a pleasure to meet you Wonder Woman."

"Temporary assignment, Jim." Batman explained, but the commissioner was already shaking hands with Wonder Woman. This gave Batman the opportunity he was waiting for, and he silently slipped away while the other two were in the middle of introductions.

Diana noticed not but a few seconds afterwards that Batman had disappeared, and was likely heading to the east side of town. She decided to be friendly with the commissioner and see if she couldn't retrieve some extra details before she took off after Batman. Commissioner Gordon seemed like a good man, and he also seemed to have a great respect for what Batman was trying to do to clean up this city. Diana decided that she would have to visit Gordon once again. He was an intricate piece of the puzzle to finding out more about Batman.

Sure enough, she found Batman near the site of the explosion. He had a device in his hand, and seemed to be searching for something as he slowly wandered around. Diana landed next to him and watched intently as Batman worked. She decided that he was definitely intelligent in the least, as he was collecting data to explain what had happened prior to the explosion. After a few more minutes, Batman put the device away and turned towards an adjacent roof top before firing off a grapple and flying up into the air. Diana shook her head and followed. What was it with this man, she questioned internally? He seemingly refused to let her in on anything that was happening. She wasn't some rookie that needed to be held back, and her frustration at this mortal was beginning to resurface once again. By the time she reached the rooftop where the grapple had latched onto, Batman was nowhere to be found. Diana looked around in every direction, and finally spotted some movement two rooftops away. She kept her focus on the movement as she approached, but lost it temporarily after it had advanced another five rooftops. Diana landed on that roof, and began searching for where he had disappeared to. Just before she took flight to look elsewhere, a voice came from behind her. "Quiet Princess." Came the deep low voice.

Diana spun around and could just barely make out a figure hidden in the shadows. If she weren't a Meta with enhanced senses, she would never have been able to see him. She silently walked over to him before whispering. "Are you going to let me be a part of this or not?"

Batman didn't answer verbally, but merely pointed to another rooftop over her shoulder. She could see some figures moving about, and turned to look back at Batman. "Joker?" She asked still whispering.

"No." Batman answered. "Just some of his goons. They are most likely spotters looking out for when I approach. Joker is long gone by now, and these men are supposed to throw me off, but I can still get answers from them. Wait here."

Just like that, Batman sprung to life again, running to the edge of the building and leaping off. Soon Diana saw him elevate, with his cape once again rigid. She wasn't about to miss what was going to happen, and she flew over to another building for a much better view. Just as she landed, Batman had fired off his grapple which attached to one of the henchmen. Batman retracted the grapple, which caused the henchman to fall while simultaneously pulling Batman swiftly to the remainder of the group. He was completely surrounded by the other five men. Diana was about to join in to help him, but just as she left her feet she saw one of the five tied up in a bola, and another on the ground after a leg sweep. The third person had a smoke bomb thrown at him. It must have been anesthetic gas as he crumpled to the floor in a heap. The other two tried to run off, but a batarang flew from Batman's hands with a chord attached which wrapped around one man's legs, tackling him to the floor. That left just one man. Batman ran up to him and snatched hold of one of the man's arms before sending it flying downward into Batman's swiftly rising knee. Diana could hear a crack from her rooftop where the bones by that man's wrists were now broken. He shrieked into the night sky from the pain before Batman grabbed him by the throat and dragged him to the edge of the building. "I want answers, and you're going to give them to me!" Batman said in a very cold and menacing voice.

The henchman before him was shaking in fear, but was only babbling about not knowing anything. Suddenly Batman tossed him over the edge of the building. Diana saw this and took flight immediately after the fast falling henchman. Based off of what Wonder Woman had just witnessed, Batman would be expelled from the League. She was quickly gaining on the man when she noticed a cable starting to become taut that was wrapped around the man's leg. Sure enough he slowed to a stop, and began rising back up towards the rooftop. Diana floated up and landed next to Batman, who was controlling the cable as it retracted and brought the man back up. He had clearly lost control of his bodily functions, his clothing now stained in wetness in the front. Batman latched onto the man's hair and pulled his head closer so that his face was staring right into Batman's. "Last chance Jimmy. Next time I won't use the line to stop you. Where is the Joker?"

H….He's …..He's in the warehouse district!" The henchman yelled in a pleading tone that was basically begging to be removed from dangling upside down over the edge of the building. "Th….The building at the corner of fifth and Clemons."

Batman pushed Jimmy away so that he swung outwards. Jimmy began to scream in fear before he swung back towards the Dark Knight and was met with a fist to the face, knocking him unconscious. Batman pulled the unconscious man back over the rooftop before releasing the cable, and allowing the body to fall to the floor. Diana watched as Batman secured all the henchman with plastic fisticuffs and basically hog tied them all together. He then pressed a button on his belt, and shortly after the Batwing was hovering above them. Batman used his grapple to climb up to the jet where Diana just flew up and was sitting in the passenger seat waiting for him. "I don't recall that being part of the policies on interrogation in the Justice League Code of Conduct handbook you provided Batman." Diana stated as the canopy closed. "Don't you think that was a little excessive?"

"Gotham isn't a part of that handbook." Batman responded before pushing forward towards the destination the goon had provided. "I needed information, and I got it. He'll live. That's all that's important."

Diana looked at him with a disapproving glare. "So you are exempt from following the guidelines you've set forth with no one else regarding Justice League protocol. That seems quite hypocritical."

"When I am working for the Justice League, I follow and accept the protocols that have been approved." Batman fired back. "You came along on this ride without my permission. This isn't a Justice League matter. So don't question what I do to get the job done here. This isn't Metropolis Princess, things work differently here."

Diana had heard just about enough about what she didn't understand that was taking place here, and her patience had worn out. As soon as they landed on the rooftop Batman had chosen as a safe enough distance to keep from attracting the clown's attention, Diana flew off until she located the destination. Batman tried to stop her, but she was too quick this time for him. She was going to take down Joker quickly, and in the interest of Justice League policies. When that was done, she planned to call for a meeting to vote Batman to either be suspended or out of the Justice League entirely. If he wanted to handle things in this hypocritical manner, and treat the rest of the League as second rate, then she wanted nothing to do with him any longer, curiosity aside.

Diana flew around the building a couple times before deciding where she wanted to enter. She found a broken window, and entered the building silently. It was quite dark inside, and took her eyes a moment to adjust. She walked around cautiously, looking and listening for any signs of intruders. Diana came up to a door, and leaned in to listen as she tried to decipher if someone was on the other side. After a few seconds, she was able to make out some voices talking quietly on the other side. They couldn't be right at the door though as their voices didn't indicate they were whispering, but carrying on a casual conversation. Satisfied that she could enter unnoticed, Diana grabbed the door handle and began turning the knob until she was overcome with an immense shock from electricity. She tried to fight her way through the pain, but was overcome by the massive amount of electricity flowing through her body. It sent her crashing to the ground. She was just able to look up when she heard laughter followed by the squeaking of the door opening. "Very good Mr. Cutioner, I'm ready for some roasted Ba….Whoops! Wrong do gooder." Joker said as he saw it was Wonder Woman and kneeled down beside her. When he saw that she was still conscious, he grabbed her by the hair and turned her head so that she was looking right at him. "You're a little out of your element here, aren't you my dear." Joker laughed again. "Electrocutioner, give her the shock of a life time. We can't have her warning the Bat about our surprise." Electrocutioner cranked up the voltage and gave her another direct hit of current through her body. Diana screamed in pain before everything went black.

Batman was more than furious with Wonder Woman. Why she would take off after someone as dangerous as the Joker was beyond him. She was supposed to be immortal and have lived for centuries already. That island she came from had obviously sheltered her from the real world more than Batman had anticipated. He was going to have to work quickly to get there before she did something stupid like get herself caught. He didn't even want to think about what the Joker would do to torture her. It took about five minutes to make it to the building that the henchman had pointed him to. Looking around at his surroundings, the building was quite large. Batman flipped open a panel on his right gauntlet and hacked in to the city's files where he located the building's blueprints. Using those, he found seven possible ways to enter. Batman then engaged the infrared vision on his cowl. When it focused in, he could make out two bodies dragging a third towards where a fourth person was standing. They had to be dragging Wonder Woman, and were likely going to place her somewhere that she could be confined. Surely the Joker had expected Batman to arrive, not Wonder Woman. Now they were likely going to use her as bait. Who was the fourth person though, and how much trouble would that other person represent? Batman basically wiped out all of the usual suspects in Joker's crew on the rooftop earlier.

Batman entered the building cautiously. He kept the infrared on so that he could see where everyone else was at, and be certain that they wouldn't be aware of his presence. He wanted to do two things before he mounted his attack. First he wanted to see who the other person was in the building. Then he needed to find a way to check on Wonder Woman's status. That would give him all the variables he needed to formulate a plan of action. Once Batman was safely inside, he shot out his grapple and climbed up into the rafters of the building. Moving silently, he approached an area where office rooms were located. He scanned the area up there for any possible traps, and finding none he then dropped down to the first floor. He approached a door at the end of a hallway where some of the heat signatures were still at, and Batman pulled out a small fiber optic cable and slid it under the door. Kneeling down, Batman connected it to a screen on his gauntlet, and saw who the fourth person was. Electrocutioner would make this rescue and apprehension extremely difficult.

Saving Wonder Woman would be the main priority now instead of taking down Harley and Joker. With that thought in mind, he was now curious as to how they had been able to take her down. Batman pulled the fiber optic cable out from under the door when he noticed that Electrocutioner was approaching the door. As Batman closed the panel on his gauntlet and started to stand up, he noticed scorch marks on the wood around the handle to the door. He surmised that it must have been rigged with a massive electrical charge. Especially if it was enough to take down someone like Wonder Woman. If it had been him that tried to open the door, he might not have survived such a blast. Batman had no more time to waste as he could hear Electrocutioner's footsteps approaching. Batman swiftly went back down the hallway until he found a room with the door cracked open. He slipped into that room and returned the door to its original position just as Electrocutioner opened the other door at the end of the hall. From where he was at, Batman could make out what Joker was saying. "Everyone take your seats. With this creature here, Bats won't be far behind." Joker laughed as Electrocutioner shut the hallway door again. Batman figured that it was Electrocutioner himself that had supplied the charge to bring down Wonder Woman when she touched the door handle. He would have to find another way in, and take out Electrocutioner immediately before anything else.

Joker knelt down in front of Diana and gave her an appraising look. She certainly had to be strong as he could see signs that she was beginning to wake up already. Joker smiled deviously as he pulled out a knife, and dragged it along the smooth skin of Diana's cheek, then followed a path down her neck. The feel of the cold metal against her skin was enough to rouse her, and she began to slowly open her eyes. Her head was throbbing, and she groaned from the pain of it as her vision adjusted to see the white painted face before her. She soon realized that Joker held a knife to her throat as it's razor sharpness cut her skin ever so slightly.

"Good evening Wonder Woman." Joker greeted with a great wide smile revealing all of his yellow stained teeth. "I apologize for the rude introduction earlier. My name is Joker, and you've already met Electrocutioner." He cackled for a moment before clearing his throat.

"I already know who you are." Diana growled.

"So, my reputation precedes me." Joker cooed. "But I would have to wonder why you still came if you knew me already. That disrespect cuts me to the bone. Sort of like this!" Joker rammed the knife next to Diana's shoulders. The blade was long enough that it scraped against her collar bone. Diana couldn't stop herself from yelping slightly from the pain before she regained her composure. She wouldn't give the clown any more glory of delivering pain. He seemed to revel in causing it and hearing it's effect.

"Don't worry dear, I can put a smile back on your face." Joker said before blurting out another short laugh. "Soon in fact, you'll think everything is funny!" Joker tossed a vile at her and when it smashed onto her chest, the vapors rose up into her face. She attempted to hold her breath, but Joker twisted the knife and she couldn't stop herself from taking in a short breath. Diana felt lightheaded for a moment, and then started to giggle. Diana tried to fight it with all her might, but it seemed that the more she fought, the stronger her body urged to laugh. She looked up into the Joker's face and wanted to be angry, but another giggle escaped her lips. Joker only smiled at her in return. When Harley came into Diana's view, seeing two white faced people, and one dressed as a jester, she couldn't handle it any longer and began to laugh uncontrollably.


	5. Chapter 5: Adding Clues to the Puzzle

Batman slowly crawled his way through the duct work that was taking him to his desired destination. He had to be extremely careful so that any noise made by his movement would be so minimal, that it would go unnoticed by his enemies. He was getting close now. He could just make out the sound of the Joker's laughter. That sound alone was all that it would take to bring his rage to a boiling point, almost ready to explode. Batman rounded another corner, and he could see the grate in front of him. He crawled ever so slowly to his intended destination. From there he hoped to be able to get a better view of Diana and her current condition. He was actually surprised that she hadn't woken up and escaped on her own. A Class A Meta in her own right, she should be strong enough to tear the building apart if she wanted. Shaking his head to focus on his task at hand, Batman continued crawling. The grate was so close, yet if he rushed over to it, then the element of surprise would be gone entirely. It was just fifteen feet away from him now. And from this distance, he could clearly understand what was being said below him. "Good evening Wonder Woman." Batman heard the Joker say. "I apologize for the rude introduction earlier. My name is Joker, and you've already met Electrocutioner." The Joker laughed for a moment, and then cleared his throat.

Batman used the Joker's talking and laughter to help speed up his process and finally he reached the grate. Looking through it, he could make out Electrocutioner's feet from one end, and Joker right next to Diana from another angle. She was awake and seemed to be responsive. Batman listened in as Diana spoke. "I already know who you are." Batman calculated that as soon as Wonder Woman broke free, he would enter and take care of Electrocutioner, but Diana never broke free. Batman fixated his view on the Amazon. He didn't understand. Even if she were groggy from the electrocution, she still should have been able to break away from her bonds and slap Joker into the next country. Something was amiss here that Batman didn't fully understand. The only thing he knew at the moment was that the onus seemed as though it fell entirely on his shoulders to get Wonder Woman free from her predicament. He watched for a moment as the Joker continued on. "So, my reputation precedes me. But I would have to wonder why you still came if you knew me already. That disrespect cuts me to the bone. Sort of like this!" Batman watched in horror as the Joker stabbed Diana with the knife he had been holding. Batman's hands clenched into tight fists as he heard Diana yelp before she fought to keep the pain away from her mind. He looked over at where Electrocutioner was, and then re-engaged his infrared. He needed to know where Harley was before he began his attack. That little bit of time was all that the Joker needed to inflict more damage however as he was again talking to his prisoner. "Don't worry dear; I can put a smile back on your face." Joker laughed again before continuing. "Soon in fact you'll think everything is funny!"

Batman reached into his utility belt as he knew what was coming next, but he was too late to stop it as the Joker threw a vial of Joker venom onto Diana's chest where it smashed open. Batman pulled out a marble, and tossed it down the duct towards where Electrocutioner was at. It made enough noise to get Electrocutioner's attention, and he stood from his seat and moved away from the door. By that time, Diana had gone from struggling to keep from giggling to beginning to laugh against her will. As soon as Batman spotted Harley, he pressed a button on a detonator that he was holding in one hand. An explosion occurred on the other side of the door where Electrocutioner had been next to. The blast had slammed the door into his back, knocking him to the ground.

The time was now, and Batman slammed his foot onto the grate causing it to drop to the ground. He wasted no time in following it, and landed on his feet. Two quick steps was all that it took to reach a groggy Electrocutioner. A swift kick to the face, and the assassin was down for the count. Batman turned in time to see Harley pointing a large handgun at him. He had to be quick as he dodged the first shot she fired. The gun had such a kick to it, that it nearly knocked her off of her feet. By the time she had regained her balance, Batman was directly in front of her. He unclenched a fist, and open hand smacked the psychotic female jester to the ground. His attention was turned next to the Joker, but he had vanished from sight. Batman walked over to Diana. "Everything's going to be alright Wonder Woman." He offered in encouragement as he looked over her carefully for any possible traps.

Diana tried to respond in between fits of laughter. "Just…Just…un…untie…..me."

Batman finished looking over how she was bound. Her hands were locked in iron shackles at the wrist, and they had tied her up with her own Lasso, using it to bind both her hands and feet behind her and to a pole as well as the chair she was sitting on. He worked the knots loose and thought of questioning her further about what happened, but her laughing fit was becoming more and more pronounced. Batman had an antidote, but he had to be sure that Joker didn't alter the blend of chemicals in this batch of Joker venom. It was a potent mixture, and Joker had discovered ways to slightly alter it through the years where the wrong antidote could do exactly the opposite and make death come that much quicker to the victim. Batman recalled seeing the vial break open while hitting Diana's chest. He pulled out an evidence kit, selecting a swab, and rubbed it against her chest for the venom residue. Batman then inserted the swab into his scanner while he pulled out a mild sedative. Diana attempted to stand from her seated position, but Batman laid his hand on her shoulder to keep her seated. "Physical activity will just make it worse. I'm going to give you a sedative while the scanner validates this strain of Joker venom." Batman explained to Diana. "I'm taking you with me so that I can have everything I need if it's necessary to alter the antidote. With Joker, we can't just give it to you. He's been known to alter the strain."

Diana nodded her head in understanding as Batman injected the sedative into her neck. It was enough to knock a normal human out for quite a few hours. It seemed to only relax Diana at first, but slowly she began to show the signs that the drug was taking effect. While she was falling under the effects of the sedative, Batman removed Electrocutioner's gloves, and tied him up along with Harley. He was going to take the gloves with him to diagnose later. He then used his radio to contact Gordon, and inform him of where to find the restrained villains. He then went over and picked up a nearly unconscious Wonder Woman. Once again signaling for the Batwing to come over for pickup, and he waited only long enough for when the police sirens could be heard before he made his way up to the waiting aircraft hovering above him. He settled Diana into the passenger seat, and headed off towards the Batcave. While en route, he made an encrypted call to Alfred, informing him that he was bringing a guest to the cave and that Alfred was not to come down for any reason tonight unless Batman signaled otherwise. When that was done, Batman continued on his path towards the cave.

Within fifteen minutes, Batman had set the Batwing down and exited, carrying Wonder Woman over his shoulder. She was still unconscious, and laughing softly in her slumber. Batman carried her up to a medical table and laid her down gently. He reached into his belt and removed the scanner. It was just completing the diagnostic, and sure enough, Joker had altered the strain of the venom once again. Fortunately, with all of the chemistry equipment at his disposal in the cave, it made it an easy alteration. While he was preparing the new version of the cure, he noticed Diana beginning to stir. Not even thirty minutes and her metabolism was already working through the sedative. Another piece to the puzzle, Batman dryly thought to himself. Diana began laughing loudly once again as she sat up to see Batman off to her side, focusing on something in front of him. She swung her legs over the edge of the table, and stood up before Batman turned to face her completely. In a gentle tone of voice, one she'd never heard from him before, he made a request to her. "Sit, please."

Batman grabbed the vial of the antidote and injected the chemical into Diana's neck. It took about twenty seconds before the laughter began to subside. Batman watched closely as another minute passed, and Diana was then down to a small giggle. Within five minutes the symptoms had subsided completely. Her cheeks were hurting from the constant smile that was stuck on her face. It aggravated her that Joker had gotten the better of her, and now she was finally able to show that aggravation with her facial features. Batman offered his hand to her, and held on as she stood from the table. Once she gained her bearings, she pulled her hand free gently. "Thank you." She said in a somber tone.

"What happened back there?" Batman asked. "I thought you would have broken the clown in half once you were conscious."

"Normally I would have, but it appears that Joker got lucky and stumbled onto one of my weaknesses. Hephaestus created the lasso with the ability to rob me of my powers if I am bounded by it. I'm no stronger than a normal human when that occurs." Diana explained. She hated having any weaknesses known to anyone, and especially by this man in front of her. "Where are we?" She asked as she looked around at all the equipment.

We're at my home, the Batcave." He answered. "I had to bring you here. It was the only way to synthesize the antidote that you needed."

"It seems to have taken care of the effects I was experiencing." Diana responded as she rubbed the back of her neck. She was still taking in her surroundings. "This cave is amazing. Where did you get all this equipment? It looks like there is more here than we have aboard the Watchtower."

"I designed most of it." Batman answered as he watched Diana looked around at all the items stored within the cave. As she started to walk away, he noticed the knife wound from the Joker still bleeding. "Let me take a look at your shoulder." Batman suggested.

Diana went back over to the medical table and hopped back onto it. Batman pulled out some medical supplies, and he began cleaning the knife wound. She couldn't help but notice how gentle he was being with this wound as he treated it. She was confused by this sudden change, and couldn't understand why this man, so cold and arrogant normally, was suddenly being so warm and caring. She thought about telling him that the knife wound would be fully healed by morning, not even leaving a scar, but she was almost mesmerized by what she was witnessing before her. No one in the League would believe her if she told them how Batman was acting at this moment. When he finished dressing her wound, she moved her arm around , testing for any limitations and finding none. She climbed back off the table and watched as he sealed the used medical supplies in a bag and placed the used items back into the kit before putting it away. "Thank you." She said again.

Diana then noticed the glass cases at the other side of the cave containing older versions of his suit as well as the Robin and Batgirl suits. Batman watched as she moved around the cave, and was preparing for more questions, but she seemed content to just look around. He decided after a few moments that she had seen enough, and wanted to get back on topic. "You shouldn't have taken off like you did tonight." Batman stated. "What were you thinking going in after the Joker like that?"

"I was attempting to apprehend him." Diana responded defiantly. This was the Batman she had expected earlier. He was back to being cold and calculating. She actually wished that he would go back to the demeanor he was in just a couple of minutes ago. She liked that version of him much better.

Based on her response, Batman figured that she was back to normal again. "Next time you are in my city, you need to follow my lead."

"An Amazon follow a mere mortal man?" Diana asked rhetorically. "That will be the day."

"I told you before that you don't understand how this city works." Batman fired back. "You think that just because you are a Meta that you can just waltz in and take control. Not in Gotham. It's too dark and corrupted for someone like you to comprehend." Diana glared and attempted to respond, but Batman didn't let her. He had things to say, and she was going to hear them. "Joker kills for no reason, and being a Meta has never stopped him before. You're lucky that I got there in time. Who knows what he could have done to you. Especially when he was able to exploit a weakness and remove your powers."

"You lower yourself to the depths of this city, and provide your own form of justice." She fired right back. "It's no wonder there are lunatics like the Joker in this city when its own hero applies such violent standards. Perhaps if you stood above that, and held true to the standards that other heroes do, then you would have already pulled this city from the dire status that you say it is currently in."

Batman clenched his fists in anger. This woman was driving him mad. She just didn't get his city. "If I did that, then I would end up like the last person that did!" After Batman yelled that, he lowered his head slightly as his response made him think of his fallen friend. One of the true bright spots that had come out of Gotham, only to be tossed back into the abyss and returning a scarred shell of the man with a schizophrenic new personality tied to him, making decisions now impossible without the use of a coin.

Diana saw that she had struck a raw nerve. "And just who would this person be?" She pressed on.

Batman took a deep breath. "He's now known as Two-Face, but before….he was Harvey, Harvey Dent." Batman had a somber tone. "He was the best of us, and we lost him to the evil that exists in this city."

Diana locked those names away in her mind to research further. This man had obviously had a large effect on Batman. "How can a city be so bad, that it takes a good man, and destroys him?" She asked, now in a calmer and more inquisitive voice.

"Because I failed him when he needed me most." Batman stated as he walked passed Diana, and headed towards the Batwing. "You should get back to the Watchtower. I still have to patrol and find the Joker."

Diana thought about arguing that he needed her help, but she knew that what had happened tonight would be the only argument that Batman needed to bring up. She wanted to do more research on Batman's rogues anyways, so she acquiesced and followed him. When they were both seated inside the Batwing, Batman held up a blindfold for Diana to wear. She gave a questioning glare in his direction, but she then decided that perhaps allowing this would cause Batman to gain a level of trust with her.

The flight back up to the Watchtower was filled with silence. Batman removed the blindfold after about fifteen minutes. Then he went back to thinking about some of the things he had discovered about Wonder Woman. She did have a weakness that could be utilized if the need ever arose, and he now had her DNA back at the cave. But he found that he wanted to find out more. When they arrived, both made their way to the commissary. Batman went straight for the coffee, and Diana went for hot tea and an apple. She turned and saw Batman exiting. She decided that she wanted to end their first day together on a positive note. It would make the remaining ones easier to tolerate. "Batman!" She called to him. He stopped and looked over at her. "I just wanted to say thank you again. For figuring out the antidote and caring for my wound."

"Anytime Princess." Batman responded. "Sleep well, and I'll see you tomorrow."

Diana returned to her quarters just as she had finished the apple. She tossed the core into the trash bin and sat down at the desk next to her bed. She powered on the computer while she sipped on her tea. When the PC was booted and connected to the intranet, Diana pulled up all the information she could find on Harvey Dent and then on Two-Face. Sure enough she found that Batman had tried to save Harvey, but an explosion left half of his body burned up, leaving him deformed and bringing about schizophrenic personalities. The more she dug the more good deeds she had seen this man had done in the name of justice as Gotham's top DA. There were even some reports, albeit unsubstantiated, that had linked Dent to having worked with Batman. These were few and far between. There was so little information about Batman to begin with other than his existence. But these reports had to have some truth to them, especially based off of Batman's words about Dent. She knew now that he had worked with the man, and assumed that he was there when the explosion occurred. This was just one instance though where someone bright and standing for justice in a way that the League does had taken place. One incident didn't explain fully enough for why Batman felt the need to go to such extremes to bring down the criminal element.

Diana had a needing desire to figure out more about what made Batman who he was. She delved into all of his villains, and was surprised at the number of those that would be considered the worst mankind had to offer. Others were amazingly powerful such as Mr. Freeze. In the end of her research though, there just wasn't anything truly substantial about the Batman to be found. The only real picture of him was when the heroes now in the Justice League had gathered together behind the President of the United States. She was extremely curious to find out more about this man that had become one of her teammates. Perhaps she could gain more information out of him by using a tried and true Amazon method. Training together would cause her sisters to find out more about each other than at any other time. They would bond together naturally and doors would ultimately open showing more information than one could ever learn by attempting to work through awkward conversations. Perhaps she could coax Batman into sparring with her. Diana decided that would be her next approach when Batman came back up to get her to go through the various tests that had to be put off because of the Joker. With her decision made on her next course of action, she shut down her PC and slid underneath the sheets of her ever inviting bed, ready to fall into a peaceful slumber before the next day began.

Back in Gotham City, Batman was perched on top of a church overlooking his city. Joker had hidden himself away for the moment, and while that did anger him, the night was not a total loss. Harley, Electrocutioner, and some various thugs were behind bars yet again. As the night slowly wound down and his patrol was nearing its end, Batman began reflecting on the moments with Wonder Woman from earlier that night. He definitely had found out some useful information, but there was still so much more that he needed to learn. He found that he was somewhat concerned as there was a desire inside him where he actually wanted to learn about her for himself rather than just for his contingency plans. He wasn't sure where this desire to learn about that woman had come from, but he most definitely found her to be an intriguing individual. He was also curious about how she might approach being in other settings than battle. If he were to find this out, that would also help him in discovering more about her culture. She was unique in that with the rest of the other League members, he was either intimate already with how they interacted in different settings, or their planets were simply not available to be reached. They were unattainable either simply by distance, or that his allies were actually the last of their kind.

The sound of thunder through the night skies brought Batman's thoughts back to the present. He looked up into the sky and could almost smell the increase in air moisture. It was going to be a stormy rest of the night. Looking at the clock tower, he saw that it was now 3:40AM, and decided that patrol could end as he again hit the button on his belt, calling the Batwing to his location for pickup. Soon he was flying off towards the safe haven of the Batcave again. He would add all the information to his logs, and formulate a plan on how to locate the Joker before turning in for the evening. He had to focus early tomorrow on the lawsuit against Wayne Enterprises. Then he could return his focus on the tests that Wonder Woman was supposed to go through earlier before Gotham called. With an exhausted sigh, he pulled the Batwing into the cave and landed. Sure enough, Alfred was there waiting on him as he exited. "Good morning sir." Alfred started. "I trust the remainder of the evening was somewhat, uneventful."

"No signs of the Joker when I went back into the city Alfred." Bruce responded as his unclasped his cowl and removed it before handing it to the older man while he walked over to his computer. "I've got some theories on how to find him, hopefully before he causes anymore damage."

"Very good, Master Bruce." Alfred responded. "But might I suggest you get some rest. You have the legal matters at Wayne Enterprises to attend to as well as the Charity Gala in downtown Gotham in the evening."

Bruce's shoulders dropped and he groaned as he really didn't want to go through with the gala. He sighed dejectedly. "Who will Bruce Wayne be escorting to the event?" He asked.

"Actually Miss Barbara requested to attend with you." Alfred answered. "She wishes to attend and not have to be tied down to what the Commissioner is being requested to adhere to as the host speaker. Also sir, there was an invitation sent out for the members of the Justice League to attend. It appears the fame from last year still seems to affect the masses. I naturally assume that the Batman will not be sending in an RSVP?"

Bruce sat in his computer chair and leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees while pinching his nose by his eyes between his forefinger and thumb. This was going to give him a migraine. Then a sudden thought occurred to him. This would be a prime opportunity for him if things were planned precisely that would further strengthen any need for an alibi in the future. He could potentially further separate himself as Bruce Wayne vs. as the Batman. He would have to put this together in more details to be sure of its success. Barbara would be able to help with this. He would need her to help him in convincing Dick, but that shouldn't be too entirely difficult a task. If Dick helped with helping conceal Bruce's secret identity, it would in turn only help himself out as well with his own.

~~ Warehouse on the outskirts of Gotham ~~

A large figure entered the warehouse. He was being cautious as it was entirely possible that this could be an ambush. He'd had no information on the man that had paid to meet him, but the check had cleared, and he would at the very least seek out this scheduled meeting. After all, any perceived ambush would result in nothing occurring any differently from any other time he had been hunted before. With his enemies broken and beaten severely. Suddenly a spotlight was turned on, pointing directly at the man. He used his arm to try and help protect his eyes from the blinding light. "Who is there?" The large man asked.

"I paid to meet you, as I have a rather unique request that I've come to realize would require an assassin with your equally unique skills." A voice answered. "If you are interested, I will double the fee that I paid just to meet you in two payments. The first will serve as a down payment, and the second you shall receive after the task I've asked of you has been completed."

"I only work for those that I know have as much to lose as I." The large man returned. "I will not accept unless I have my employer's name."

"Very well." The voice answered just before the spotlight was shut off and the building's lights were turned on. The change in lighting revealed to the large man a virtual small army of men around him with a singular man walking through the masses before stopping just in front of him. "My name is Ra's al Ghul."


	6. Chapter 6: Sparring, Sweet Sparring

Diana woke up the following morning with her curiosity still peaked and growing with each passing moment. She climbed out of bed and took a quick shower before putting on some civilian clothing. Then she took her armor and polished the metal pieces including her tiara before setting the cloth portion through the portable washer/dryer supplied in each League member's quarters. While she waited on her uniform to finish being cleaned and dried, Diana decided taking some time to get something to eat for breakfast was in order. She quickly pulled her still damp hair up into a tight pony tail, and left her quarters heading to the commissary. When she arrived, Flash, J'onn, and Superman were at a table together. Flash was the first to notice her there. He quickly sped around the commissary, and before she could do anything a tray was in her hands with various fruits, a bagel, and a iced mocha. "Morning Wondy!" Flash said cheerfully before returning to his seat. "Rumor has it you and Bats had an interesting evening."

"Yes." She responded as she set the tray down next to the three of them and took a seat. "Interesting seems to be the word that would best fit for last night."

"According to the monitors, the major incident last night occurred in Gotham." Superman joined in. "I'm surprised that Batman was willing to let you go with him."

Diana blushed slightly as she put some cream cheese onto her bagel.

"No way!" Flash exclaimed. "What did you have to do to get Bats to let you come along?"

"I sort of….threatened to tear apart all of the Javelins if he didn't let me go with him." She answered somewhat sheepishly.

"And he didn't call your bluff?" Flash responded inquisitively.

Diana gave him a look that basically told Flash that she wasn't bluffing before biting into her bagel.

"I wouldn't expect that to work a second time." J'onn added.

"No, it won't work again." Diana added with a dejected tone. "I made a mistake in taking the Joker lightly, and that resulted in him being able to escape from capture. Hopefully Batman won't ban my presence in his city because of that."

"Funny you should mention that Diana." Superman chimed in. "The Justice League's presence has been requested for a charity event in Gotham tonight."

Diana raised a curious eyebrow upon receiving this news. "Why would they want us there?" She asked.

"They want some extra firepower to get the big money donations rolling in Di." Flash answered while cramming his mouth full of food. "Celebrity power attracts the most attention."

"I don't know if we should attend." Superman stated. He still felt uneasy being around the perceived most powerful people in the country, and he didn't care much for dealing with rich snobs. Besides, being Gotham, he knew that Bruce Wayne would likely be attending which would mean that Batman wouldn't, and that could draw attention to Bruce's secret identity if he were the only no show and the gala being in his own city.

"I believe we should seek out Batman's opinion on the matter before a decision is made." J'onn suggested.

"Aww man." Flash whined. "We might as well chock that one up to another missed opportunity for some fun. Bats doesn't even know the meaning of the word for crying out loud."

Diana had heard about enough from Flash's whining at that point. "We can ask when Batman returns to the Watchtower this afternoon." She said as she got up from her seat and picked up her tray. "He informed me last night that he would be here." She then walked back to her personal quarters. Once there, she would finish her breakfast and get ready to head to the training room. She had some pent up aggression to work out of her system after having been captured so easily the night before.

~~ Wayne Enterprises ~~

Lucius Fox was in Bruce's office as they were going through some legal paperwork. Bruce had spent the first couple of hours already working through all of the leads he had come across before. When Lucius had brought in all of the paperwork to go through though, it helped to give Bruce two possible suspects. One of the two lead him to Luthor Corp, as that was this scientist's previous place of employment. Lucius had also received reports that Luthor Corp had plans on attempting to move in. This was something that they simply could not allow. And that was what Bruce and Lucius were now working on. After spending another two hours of planning, Bruce had scanned all of the documentation, and sent it to the company's lawyers. He then walked Lucius out before he called it a day and headed home himself. On the drive home, Bruce called Barbara Gordon, informed her of what he wanted to have happen, and then asked her to contact Dick about his plan to secure Bruce Wayne's status as nothing more than the playboy. She agreed that regardless of their tumultuous situation; that Dick would likely also see the necessity around it as it would be best for all of them in the long run.

When Bruce arrived home; as always he had a waiting Alfred with a meal prepared for him before he could head down to the cave. He begrudgingly took the meal and headed straight towards the cave entrance. Once down there, Bruce set the tray of food down and logged onto his Cray supercomputer. He pulled up the file that had been started on Wonder Woman, and then pulled up the finished report on her DNA that had run throughout the morning. He looked over the results before inputting them into his file on Wonder Woman. Some results were surprising to him. Her blood type appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary when compared to any common human being's. Though there were some indicators to be found in her DNA strand, but nothing as extravagant as when compared to a Thanagarian, Kryptonian, or Martian. Based on her DNA alone, if he hadn't seen her with his own eyes, he'd have been hard pressed scientifically to believe she would be classified as such a powerful Meta.

Finished with his report, Bruce saved it and walked over to the locker room area, where he changed into the bat suit. He pulled on the cape and cowl while making his way over to the Batwing. After performing a systems check, and refueling the jet, he climbed in and fired up the engines. Within seconds he was in the air and swiftly flying upwards towards the Watchtower. He was intending to begin the construction of the teleporter pad, get through the tests with Diana, and plant the seeds to get at least some of the League members to accept the invitation to the charity event tonight. Hopefully J'onn had acquired most of the equipment that they had laid out in the previous status meeting. If not, there was some of the necessary equipment already on board that would be enough to get started on. He was also anxious to go through the tests with Diana. Something about her had piqued his interest. Her DNA results had only stoked the fire that was his interest in her. He couldn't pin down the actual cause of his intrigue as of yet, but none the less he would push forward until he had all of the information that he felt he needed. In the case of being Batman, that would usually encompass knowledge of every angle, every possible thing that could potentially affect any outcome so that he could formulate any necessary course of action or actions.

As soon as Batman landed the Batwing inside the Javelin bay, he knew that something was not right as he had spotted Superman waiting on him to climb out of the Batwing. With a deep frustrated sigh, Batman climb out and headed straight for the door out of the Javelin Bay. Superman turned as Batman walked passed him. "Batman, a word if you don't mind." Superman said.

"What is it Kent?" Batman asked.

"The Justice League received an invitation to a charity gala in Gotham for tonight." Superman started explaining. "Flash wants to attend, but we all thought that you deserved the option of first refusal. If you don't want us to go then…"

"Save it Kent." Batman interrupted. "I already know about it. I think you should go. It would raise more funding for Gotham's defense department, and in that city, there is never enough funding for defending it properly." Batman was actually glad that Superman had brought this topic up. That had actually saved him from having to work it in at some point while he was on the Watchtower.

"So, you'll be going then?" Superman asked as he continued following Batman down a hallway.

"No." Batman answered. "I'm busy."

"So Bruce Wayne will be in attendance then." Superman more stated than questioned. He couldn't help but to wonder if Batman was up to something. It was so unlike him to accept any Meta in his city, regardless of the cause. But he also knew better than to ask very many questions when Batman had actually acquiesced. "Very well, I'll inform the rest of the team, and we'll decide who will represent the League."

Batman grunted and continued on his path. He was seeking out Diana for the moment. The tests he had to run wouldn't take long, and then he could focus on the teleporters. He first went into the Monitor Womb, and found only J'onn there. The Martian turned and greeted him in just the same way that he would have if the roles had been reversed. Batman walked over to a monitor and typed in a command searching for all League members' locations. He kept the search wide so as to prevent anyone believing that he was focusing in on one individual. The search results revealed to him that Wonder Woman was currently in the training area. Batman then turned on his heels and exited, now heading towards the Amazon princess.

Diana was in the middle of a fight with multiple enemies, and that allowed Batman to enter into her training room undetected. He made his way over to the controls panel and looked at the settings Diana was currently using. She had the settings at the highest possible danger levels that stayed within the parameters set forth for any Leaguer to train with. Batman however noticed something different about what Diana was doing. When looking at the listing of villains she was having simulated, Batman realized that she was currently fighting with many of his own enemies. She had been through Joker, Poison Ivy, Mr. Freeze, and Firefly so far. Batman was impressed and intrigued by this. Why was she selecting his rogue's gallery? He asked to himself internally. Perhaps she was embarrassed about how easily she had been caught the night before? As he watched her fighting, he noticed something about her technique as well that grabbed his attention. While she was handling herself very well, he noticed that her fighting tactics were somewhat one dimensional, and if that didn't work she was quick to rely on her powers to get her out of any tight spot. He decided to change the game a tad, and started typing in commands on the control panel.

Diana was working up a good sweat after she had increased the danger level settings. The simulations of Batman's rogues were challenging to say the least at that high of a difficulty level, but her Amazon training was proving to be efficient in bringing the enemies down. After some time though, she thought she noticed a glitch in the training simulation as for a split second the hologram projection around each droid flashed off before returning to the villains again. Suddenly she was having difficulty blocking all of the attacks that were aimed at her. She had to become defensive for the majority of the battle, and while she was able to avoid a good portion of the blasts, more frequently they were striking her at a higher percentage. The Joker droid feinted a punch that Diana tried to counter. If it had been a real attempt, she'd have been successful, but being a feint, the Joker droid was more than prepared to use her counter attack against her. The droid latched onto her arm and pulled her over as it performed a hip toss, slamming her to the ground. Before she could do anything, the Mr. Freeze droid locked each appendage to the ground with separate ice blasts. The Ivy droid then used its powers to wrap Diana up in vines while the Joker droid hovered over her with a knife at the ready. She yelled in rage as she began to use her powers to break free when she was stopped in her tracks at the sound of a deep baritone voice. "Computer, stop simulation." It commanded.

All the droids stood down, and Diana was instantly freed. She rose to her feet as she glared at Batman standing before her. He held out a bottle of water for her, which she violently snatched from his hands. "What did you do Batman, remove the security protocols so that I would be defeated?" She spat out.

Batman smirked at her angered state before answering. "No. I just gave them different fighting techniques."

"Why would you do that?" She asked, still extremely irritated. "None of them, according to the files have those techniques at their disposal. I was trying to educate myself with those villains."

"You're right, none of them have that knowledge." Batman stated. "But I do." He turned on his heels and went to exit before she grabbed his shoulder from behind.

Diana suddenly smirked as she placed her hands on her hips. This couldn't have turned out any better if she had planned it out herself. Batman had just supplied her with a perfect opening to get what she had wanted in the first place. She stared right into the white slits of Batman's cowl. "Well in that case, why don't you spare with me then?" She asked defiantly. "I promise not to be too hard on you little man."

Batman made sure that he remained as unreadable as ever before he responded. "I don't think we have time for that. You still have your testing to perform."

Diana was adamant that she would not be denied. "Come on now Batman. We could up the ante and decide on a wager. At the very least I would bet that something from sparring with you would provide you at least some of the results your precious tests are supposed to derive."

Batman thought about that for a moment. He could maneuver in a way that would get him to test Diana's flexibility somewhat. He also knew not to let her "little man" comment get under his skin, as he knew without a doubt that doing so was her primary intention when using it. "What are the terms?" Hearing her out couldn't hurt anything he'd decided.

"Perhaps the first one to achieve three pin falls or submissions will be the deciding factor as to coming up to the winner." Diana suggested. "If you win, not only will I perform all of your tests without any form of complaint or refusal, but I will also adhere to any information that you desire to know about me for the next 24 hour period. I also promise not to ask for any reasoning behind information you request of me. However, when I win, then I get out of the tests entirely without question, and you have to answer to any request I make for the next 24 hours."

Batman had absolutely no desire to give Diana that much time to ask for anything that she could possibly be curious about. "Make that one hour." He countered. "And you cannot ask about anything that would reveal my secret identity to you."

Diana thought about it for a moment. All she had sought out for in reality was just the chance to spar with Batman. That he'd even considered the rest of her proposal excited her to no end. She waited for what she believed would be an acceptable amount of time so as not to appear overly eager to accept his counter offer. "Very well, Batman. We have an agreement. Do you wish to lay out any combat ground rules?"

Batman's mind raced through all the possibilities. How long could he last against a Class A Meta human? No, that wouldn't help him get to the results he was looking for. "I will refrain from using any of my equipment, and you don't use any of your powers." He offered. "We can test solely from our combat skills."

"I agree to these terms." Diana stated before tossing the bottle of water away and getting into a fighting stance. She was very excited to see how her Amazon training would handle someone with various martial arts abilities. She was extremely confident that her many years of training would gain her a decisive victory.

Batman removed his belt as a show of good faith, and laid it next to the training room console before joining Diana in a fight ready stance. They both circled around, at first neither one willing to strike as each wanted to take on a defensive approach and not make a crucial mistake. All it would take was one overly aggressive misstep, and one of them would find themselves quickly behind by a pin fall. Batman's patience was almost as indomitable as his will, and from what little information he had realized, Diana's patience would only take her so far. Sure enough, she became tired of waiting and went in for a striking blow to Batman's body. He was able to quickly spin away while adding a roundhouse kick that connected with Diana's forearm. She was surprised with Batman's speed as she was barely able to block the counter strike. Soon though Batman took the initiative and began throwing punches and kicks. She was able to block them all, but Batman had anticipated this, and managed to work his way inside her defenses. He was too close for punches and kicks, so Batman switched fighting styles into the Keysi Method, relying on knees and elbows to inflict the damage. An elbow to the temple was dodged, but the knee to Diana's midsection was not. The blow very nearly knocked the wind out of her. She did manage to catch the second elbow that was again aimed at her head. Diana latched onto his arm, and pulled to contort Batman into a compromising position. She found herself to again be amazed. A mortal man this size shouldn't be as agile and flexible as Batman was. He was able to deftly move his body out of the potential submission hold that Diana was attempting to place him in. Not wasting any time, Batman quickly countered with a leg sweep. She wasn't expecting or ready for such a move, and quickly fell to the ground with a thud. Batman used his body weight to his advantage as he crashed down on top of her. It was a struggle, but eventually he was able to lock her arms up where she would have to use her super strength and break his bones in order to escape. Just like that she was down one to nothing.

Diana was extremely frustrated that she had been beaten and so quickly. If he had been an enemy, she would have snapped both his arms in two for even attempting such a maneuver to tie her arms up. Diana quickly stood up and charged after Batman. She was throwing any strikes that she could think of from her years of training, and none of them were even coming close to landing against her opponent. She felt herself being pulled over Batman's shoulder in a hip toss motion, but Diana aided it by jumping into the throw. This allowed her to increase the distance and roll back to her feet as soon as she hit the ground. She turned around quickly, only to find a foot mere inches away from her face as Batman was flying at her. The kick hit true on its intended target. Diana staggered backwards a few steps as her eyes were watering from the strike. Before she could see clearly, gauntlet covered hands latched onto her head and pulled her down into a knee. This dazed her enough that Batman was able to lock her in another hold while she was falling to the ground. And just like that she was down by two pin falls.

Diana slammed her fist to the floor in anger before it dawned on her why she had lost so quickly the second time. She had let her frustration from the first fall boil over into the second fall, which showed that she had become an easy target. Diana took a few deep breaths to calm herself before she stood to her feet, ready to go again. This time she paced herself, and watched his movements intently. There had to be a tell for when the man before her was going to strike. His body language spoke of a man that was completely calm. Batman then feinted a punch , which Diana deftly blocked. She was seeking any opening to exploit, and promised herself that she would remain disciplined against this man. She simply refused to let her sisters down by failing to defeat this man while utilizing the fighting technique that the Amazons had perfected over the years. Batman came in attempting to sweep her front leg, but Diana was ready for it as she stepped over the sweep attempt and towards Batman. From that distance, Diana head-butted Batman, which staggered him slightly. She decided to pounce on this opportunity as she took hold of one of Batman's wrists before turning his arm in a painful motion so that she could manage to push him to the ground from behind. When Batman had her behind him, he ran forward pulling Diana with him until he came up to a training room wall. Once there, he lifted his legs up and pressed against the wall with his feet hard. This movement knocked Diana off balance, and Batman helped her to fall by intentionally tangling his legs with hers. As he landed on top of her for the second time, Batman rolled to the side and got up slowly. He then reached out to Diana, and placed two fingers in a specific spot. This caused Diana's limbs to go numb, and she crumpled to the floor. Batman then walked over to a wall and slammed his shoulder into it before turning back to Diana. He had just reset his shoulder into its socket. He then walked back over and knelt down next to Diana as she was struggling to get up. "That's three, princess." Batman stated before hitting another pressure point on her. Diana quickly shot back up to her feet. She was furious that she had lost so decisively.

"Next time, we use powers and see how you fare Batman!" She almost yelled at him before storming off towards the medical area where Batman's tests were set to be run. He stood there for a moment just watching the red hot Amazon stomping away from him. More pieces to the puzzle he thought to himself before following after her with a smirk on his face.


	7. Chapter 7: All in the Name of Charity

"Hey John. You gotta check this out!" Flash yelled in excitement at Green Lantern from the Monitor Womb.

Green Lantern walked over to Flash and looked at the monitor he was referring to. "What is it?" He asked.

"Diana just stormed out of training room three, and I saw Bats go in there earlier." Flash explained. "I think she might have pummeled him or something from the way she left there."

"Think again Flash." GL corrected him while pointing at the screen which revealed a perfectly healthy Batman walking out.

Flash scratched his head in confusion. "Well then, what happened?"

GL turned to walk away as he answered over his shoulder. "If I were you, I'd rather not find out."

Back in the medical area, Batman followed Diana inside and began performing his preliminary testing by tracking all of her vitals. He wanted to get a base line before he had her move on to some of the more physical testing. Diana had a scowl on her face and wasn't speaking. If he'd not have been the reason for it, Batman probably would be researching as to why she was in such a foul mood. When he had gathered her pulse, heart rate, and scanned her lungs and other organs, Batman instructed her to follow him back to the training area. Instead of one of the sparring rooms, he had Diana go into the strength and conditioning rooms. There Batman put her through a variety of tests ranging from speed, endurance, strength, and flexibility. Diana went through all the tests without putting up a fight. She still hadn't said a single word to him in fact. After she completed the final test, before he informed her she was done he had a question for her. "You're not still angry are you?"

She puffed out some air at him, but still didn't answer. "Princess, you recall the conditions of the wager. "I have one hour to ask you anything, and you have to answer, and answer honestly." Batman reminded her.

She finally sighed and her shoulders slumped slightly. "Yes I'm still angry." She started before her voice lowered into a defeated sounding whisper. "How did you defeat me so easily?"

"There was nothing easy about it Princess." He answered. "But if you must know, it's because I knew your moves. You need to use more than just your Themyscrian fighting skills. Expand your knowledge. I used four different forms of martial arts, and unless I'm mistaken, you aren't familiar with any of them."

Diana's eyes widened for a moment before realization set in. "Perhaps man's world has changed and added more efficient forms of combat training since my sisters were last in tune with the happenings of the world outside Themyscria."

Batman nodded his head in agreement of her realization. "But you're here now, and you could change that for yourself, if not for your people."

"That's certainly a valid point." She responded. "Are we finished with the tests?"

"Yes but I still have 55 minutes left to ask questions." Batman countered with a smirk.

Diana turned and was surprised with the playful nature that Batman seemed to be showing at the moment. However before she could continue with the conversation, J'onn entered the room seeking out Batman. "Good afternoon." He said to them both. "Batman, I assume that Superman approached you regarding the Charity Gala tonight in Gotham?"

"Yes, and so long as that is the only purpose, I have no issue with the League sending representatives." Batman answered. "Has anyone decided who will be attending?"

"All are expected to attend." J'onn answered. "In fact, Shayera requested that you attend Diana to search for proper formal wear. She is waiting for you in the Javelin Bay."

Diana thanked J'onn for the information and excused herself from the room. She wasn't exactly sure why Shayera was looking for her, but her curiosity caused her to have the desire to find out. Meanwhile Batman joined J'onn in moving to the area of the Watchtower that Batman had slated for the teleportation pads to be built. He didn't need to return to the Manor for a few more hours, and wanted to make some progress on that project. The sooner it was up, the better. As it stood now, two jets would be traveling to Gotham when it could have been just the Batwing. Batman and J'onn worked hand in hand nonstop for the better part of four hours. They had made great strides in that the base was built, and they had almost finished wiring the base to house up to fifteen people at one time, should the need ever arise. Batman had actually lost track of time, and would have stayed onboard the Watchtower working all night long had Barbara not called him from the Batcave to inform him that she was waiting for him.

Batman flew down to the Batcave, and upon arriving not only was Barbara there, but Dick and Alfred as well. Everyone seemed to be smiling until Bruce and Dick's eyes met. There was an awkward silence for a moment as neither one wanted to say the first word to the other person. Finally Barbara decided to take the initiative and began going over Bruce's plans to anyone that would listen. Sure enough talking business was all it took to get the both of them talking to each other. Within ten minutes, if one didn't know any better, Barbara would have bet no one would have been able to tell that they were fighting constantly before Dick had moved out. It was refreshing to see these two finally getting along again. Once the plans were laid out in full, and each person knew their own part, the subject changed again to one with more friction. "So how is Tim doing with the training? Dick asked.

"You should ask Alfred." Bruce answered. "He's the one that's been training him. Then it's your turn."

Dick gave him an astonished look. He was surprised Bruce would allow him to train Tim. Barbara decided to speak her piece while they were on the topic. "So Bruce, since it looks like a new Robin is going to be in the field again, does that mean that Batgirl can make a return as well?"

Bruce grumbled while becoming rigid in his stance. He didn't want any other young lives to be sucked in by him, and it seemed like they were attempting to force him to do just the opposite. "I don't think that's such a good idea." He said while trying to reign in his temper. He couldn't just push them away tonight since he needed them both for his plans and the charity event.

"Come on Bruce." Dick chimed in. "Babs has been training with me ever since you forced her to stop being Batgirl."

"Yeah and we could start off slowly, like no patrolling alone at first." Barbara coaxed.

Bruce just wanted this conversation to end. "I'll think about it."

"Good." Barbara added with a smile. "While you're doing that, I'll start patrolling with Dick until Tim is ready to switch his training mentors."

"We have a charity event to get to, and it's time to get ready." Bruce said as he moved towards the locker area to get out of his Batsuit and take a shower. Dick and Barbara went back to the computer so that they could look over the last few patrols to see what was happening around the streets of Gotham. They knew if they weren't prepared for everything and made a mistake, and that would be the end of any Batgirl and Robin talk. They found that Joker was still on the loose, and Bruce didn't really have anything concrete to go off of. Aside from that there was nothing out of the ordinary. Satisfied, they powered down the computer before making their way up to the Manor.

~~ Downtown Gotham ~~

Shayera had basically dragged Diana around from store to store, looking for some formal wear that would be considered appropriate for that night's event. Shayera had the challenge of finding something that would allow her wings to be unobstructed. Having a wing pinned down by clothing was like dealing with a cramped muscle. It was incredibly uncomfortable. Diana understood where Shayera was coming from, but she still didn't understand why she also needed to purchase a dress for herself. She had different outfits to choose from that were fit for royalty on home island of Themyscria. Shayera scoffed at the fact that it seemed anything Diana tried on looked good on her. She had settled on a deep blue dress that only accentuated her blue eyes. Shayera meanwhile had finally found a dress more of a cream color with no back that hugged in the right places. Satisfied that they both had the dresses they wanted, they paid for them and flew back to where they had settled the Javelin on a rooftop inside Gotham. Each of them had the afternoon off, so there was enough time for them to grab a bite to eat and Diana wanted to take in some of the sites in Batman's city during the day where she would be better able to view the city. They laid the dresses over the top of the seats in the Javelin and returned to the streets.

Shayera had her sights set more on food at the moment than anything else. Meanwhile Diana was being careful to take in everything around her. Unlike Metropolis, the streets were not as clean as the occasional piece of litter could be seen. The city itself didn't seem to be as beautiful as it was at night. It was much more dingy, and had an aura of advanced aging about it. Sort of like an old retired boxer that had spent years getting beaten upon. Even the sky seemed to be uninviting as it cast a constant gray, and seemingly refused to allow the sunlight to shine through the thick clouds. The sights she took in made her wonder just why a man such as Batman would defend such a place instead of letting it fall into the level of decadence that it was currently in, and starting over from scratch. There were already buildings that seemed to be shut down from disrepair. She stopped momentarily when Shayera pointed out a small diner across the street from a building that looked like it used to be a movie theater at one time. She had been to theaters based on Flash's request. He had told her early in her time in man's world that movies were an excellent reference to help familiarize herself with the world that she knew so little about. As Shayera grabbed her by the arm and pulled her over towards the diner, Diana was still deep in thought as she tried to understand what it was about this city that Batman felt compelled to protect.

The food at the diner was actually tasty. Diana and Shayera both enjoyed their meals as they spoke about what to expect at the charity event. Shayera had more experience in the political sense of the world, and she used that experience in providing Diana with some helpful hints on dealing with the media. She explained how Diana had to be mindful of just what it was that she said as there were some members of the media that would be looking for anything to report on, even if they had to twist some words in order to make a story out of nothing. Diana couldn't believe that some people would be willing to do such things, but in her time living in man's world, she had experienced how deception could run rampant.

After the impromptu politics and media relations session, it was time for them to return to the Javelin so that they could change and meet up with Superman, Flash, J'onn, and Green Lantern. According to Green Lantern initially balked at the notion that Batman thought he could just decide not to go, but J'onn brought up a line item inside the League manual that had been voted in favor of, which excluded part time members from requirement to attend any event that didn't concern an actual crisis. GL grumbled, but knew he couldn't argue the point as he was one of the members that had voted in favor of the Code of Conduct manual. After that had been settled, they decided to arrive at the charity event all together as a team.

~~ Manor, 45 minutes before the Charity Gala ~~

Bruce slipped on his suit jacket after finishing with his tie. He gave a last look in the mirror to be certain that he was appropriately dressed for the playboy to attend the charity. He grabbed a few items for his pockets, his smart-phone, pager, wallet, and a modified bottle of Binaca breath spray. Instead of actual breath spray, Bruce used this spray bottle when no one was looking in order to cloud himself with the scent of a specific booze that the socialites knew Bruce Wayne to drink. Typically it rotated between bourbon and scotch. With no actual date tonight, he wasn't sure he would need it, but better to have it and not need it then the other way around. Once he was satisfied that he was ready, Bruce made his way down to the main floor of the Manor. However upon arriving there, it was as silent as a tomb. Surely everyone had to be here somewhere. Bruce wandered to the kitchen area, but found no one there either. That left him to use his detective skills. Thinking to himself, he knew there were only so many places that someone such as Dick could be where Bruce wouldn't be able to hear him talking or laughing, and the most likely case would be the Batcave.

Bruce opened the secret entrance to the sound of a struggle. He quickened his pace slightly to get down the stairs, and when he did, he could hear the same sounds coming from the training area. He moved silently over to the entrance and watched as Alfred was in the process of training Tim. Bruce watched Tim as he maneuvered around the training area, trying to keep his balance on a series of posts to stand on while Alfred used a broom handle as a prodding device to enhance the challenge. "Very good, Master Tim." He encouraged the young man. "You've shown much improvement in maintaining your balance."

Tim smiled at the compliment, but then happened to see Bruce standing in the doorway and promptly lost his balance, falling onto his backside. Bruce smirked as he walked the rest of the way into the room. "You have to maintain your focus Tim regardless of any changes around you." Bruce instructed.

Tim dusted himself off after getting back onto his feet. He still had a smile on his face at receiving instructions from the man behind the Bat. Two days ago he wondered if Bruce would even let him train at all. He truly believed that Batman needed to have a Robin beside him to keep him grounded and more human. Batman had seemed to lose that when Jason was killed. He had fallen inward and stopped Barbara from being Batgirl. Nightwing was already on his own, and Bruce couldn't stop that. Tim only hoped that he could help out when he finally discovered Batman and Nightwing's secret identities. "Thanks Bruce, I'll keep that in mind."

Dick smiled at this exchange taking place. He knew Tim was a good kid, and would do the old man some good himself. "That's alright Tim." He said turning to the younger man. "You've got a couple more hours of training with me to get that down."

Bruce turned to face Dick with a serious look. "Don't be late tonight Dick." He instructed.

Dick gave him a look that said he would be there to do his part, and not to worry about it. Bruce then looked towards Barbara and Alfred. "Are you ready to go Barbara?" He asked the redhead in a beautiful black dress.

She smiled and held out her hand for him to take. "Yes I am Mr. Wayne." Bruce took her hand and walked with Alfred out of the cave leaving the other two behind to continue training.

~~ The Gala ~~

The Justice League all arrived together just as they had planned. Although as soon as they were spotted, they were consumed with all the light bulbs of cameras that began flashing a storm of white blinding light. Diana had to protect her eyes with her arm from all the flashing lights. She couldn't make out any of the numerous questions that were being thrown out towards the League by all of the media members that were now surrounding them. Flash seemed to revel in all the attention as he quickly zipped from one person to the next answering a question from each person. That proved to be enough of a distraction for the rest of the League as they slipped through the doors and into the building. The interior of the building was exquisite. Everything was dazzling and sparkling. The League was led by a female into a large ballroom that gave off the same look. The only difference there was the banners that had been hung up stating "Save the Defense Department" around room. In the far corner was a small orchestra playing music, and in the center of the room some people were together as couples dancing to the music.

Diana looked around in astonishment at what she saw before her. Outside she would never have guessed that such a building would be so beautiful on the inside. Perhaps this is what Batman saw from this city, she thought to herself. Perhaps there was a deep inner beauty that ached to be released. Before she could take in much more, there was a man swiftly approaching the group. He stuck out his hand as he stood before them. "Greetings." He started. "I'm so glad you could make it. I'm Mayor Marion Grange." He took Superman's hand. "It is truly a pleasure to meet all of you."

Superman shook the mayor's hand in return. "Thank you for inviting us Mr. Grange."

"Think nothing of it." The mayor responded as he moved to shake Green Lantern's and Shayera's hands. I'm sure that just your presence here will help raise the funding we need."

When he reached Diana's hand to greet her, she gave him a questioning look. "What do you plan to do with the money that you gain tonight Mr. Mayor?" She asked.

"Well Wonder Woman, as I'm sure you're aware from the other night, we have a unique problem with some of Gotham's citizens." A man with white hair and a mustache said as he joined beside the mayor. "It's nice to see you again."

"Commissioner Gordon?" She asked as she recalled his name.

"Yes Wonder Woman." Gordon answered. "I'm sure after that night you are well aware of some of Gotham's worst, unfortunately."

"That's right Wonder Woman." The mayor confirmed. "What we intend to do with the funding is twofold. First we need to add on to Arkham Asylum for more inmates to be held there. And secondly, Blackgate Prison is in desperate need of repairs."

Commissioner Gordon chimed in from there. "If we can renovate Blackgate, then we will hopefully have a better chance of keeping the criminals off the streets for a change." Someone behind the Commissioner touched him on the shoulder, pulling him from the conversation. He looked over at what they were referring to, and turned back to Diana. "I'm sorry Wonder Woman, but if you'd excuse me, my daughter's just arrived."

Diana watched as the commissioner walked away towards a lovely redheaded young woman. She was with a man much older than her. She watched as the redhead lovingly embraced her father. Diana decided that she would have to catch the commissioner again. She would even stay behind after the Gala ended if she needed to. She wanted to continue her investigation into the man behind the Bat, and the commissioner was an excellent source of information.

Bruce watched as the commissioner approached from where he was originally. He couldn't help himself but to stare for a moment at Diana from over the commissioner's shoulder. She was absolutely stunning in her dress. She was definitely the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on. The blue dress she was wearing had spaghetti straps which technically covered more of her shoulders than her Wonder Woman uniform but for some reason he'd never taken notice of the bare skin showing there until now. Bruce forced himself to pull his view away from Diana as Barbara left his side to embrace her father. He then followed her the two steps up to Gordon. "Hello Jim." Bruce said in greeting.

"Mr. Wayne." Gordon responded. "Thank you for allowing my daughter to come with you tonight. I know it prohibited you from one of your usual dates."

"No thanks necessary Jim." Bruce responded with a smile. "Any time I can help the woman that keeps Dick in line, I'm more than happy to help out."

Barbara smiled at that comment, knowing that Dick was listening in to the entire conversation. The conversation didn't last much longer as Commissioner Gordon had other responsibilities to attend to. Barbara made her way over to the entrée table and then over to some of her dad's handpicked police officers in attendance. She was very familiar with the majority of the officers in the city thanks to her father's career. Bruce meanwhile perused the socialites throughout the ball room. He dropped off the check he had Alfred write earlier into the Bin they were using for donations, and then he quickly grabbed a drink in one hand as he engrossed himself into the topics of all the social clichés around him. He always maintained a good distance away from the League members, not wanting to give himself away. Aside from Clark and J'onn, who'd found out his secret, it would be easier to throw them off if he only had to approach one at a time. It was much easier to remain in playboy mode while dealing with a small group that he worked with as Batman. He knew eventually he would have to greet each of them as Bruce Wayne at some point tonight, but it would be on his terms.

Eventually Bruce "bumped" into Superman and made his introduction. The conversation was casual for the most part and didn't last very long. Bruce then came over to J'onn and "introduced" himself to the Martian. J'onn formed a mental link after a few quick comments, where they could discuss other business for a few moments. Bruce was saddened that no one seemed to approach J'onn. He felt compelled to stay there with the Martian for a time. He wanted to make certain that J'onn could feel more comfortable. Eventually as others had seen Bruce Wayne chatting and laughing with the Martian, they slowly moved over that way and joined in the conversation. Eventually J'onn had himself a group of admirers thanks to Bruce, and he definitely wouldn't be lonely or bored now.

Diana watched as the man that had come in with the commissioner's daughter seemed to be the only one to introduce himself to J'onn that wasn't obligated to do so. After the mayor and commissioner had introduced themselves, no one else did until this man. In fact this man was actually staying there and carrying on a conversation with J'onn. A smile on her friend's face caused Diana to smile as well. Soon, others even began to approach J'onn and speak to him. Diana leaned over to John and Shayera and asked quietly. "Who is that man that has been talking to J'onn?"

John and Shayera looked over to the man Diana had pointed out to them. "Oh that." John started. "That's Bruce Wayne. He's one of the richest men in the world. Why do you ask?"

"Because he walked over to J'onn, completely fearless and just seemed to strike up a polite conversation with him." Diana explained. "He's the only one aside from us that has done so."

"That's probably because he's drunk by now." John answered. "He may be one of the world's wealthiest, but he's also known to be quite the party boy. He's always at the biggest parties, usually with a different date each time. He does a lot of charity work to offset his playboy image, but a checkbook seems to be the only good he is capable of."

Diana continued to watch this Bruce Wayne character. Based on John's description of the man, she would have thought he'd have said something offensive to J'onn rather than make the Martian smile. Soon she had to avert her eyes as the man she'd been watching looked in her direction, smiled, and then winked at her. These actions caused Diana to flinch inwardly. Fearless seemed to be this man's approach to everything. She was not so unlike J'onn. After all she was incredibly powerful and independent, especially for a woman in man's world. Many men seemed to be afraid to approach her. The women didn't seem scared, but gave her dirty looks as they yanked on their own dates' arms to get away from her. This man not only smiled and winked at her, but now he was approaching her. She turned away slightly to speak with John and Shayera as a form of distraction, but they had moved away to the group with J'onn without her realizing it. By the time she had turned back around Bruce was directly in front of her, looking right at her. "Hello. Wonder Woman isn't it?" Bruce asked while taking her hand and raising it up to his lips.

Diana pulled her hand gently away from his grip. He smelled of alcohol and seemed to be swaying slightly. Still, he had approached and she was going to be cordial with the man at least. Perhaps if she were, he would be generous with a donation for a needed cause. "Hello Mr…" Diana paused realizing that he hadn't introduced himself yet.

"Wayne." He answered. "Bruce Wayne. But please call me Bruce."

"Very well, Bruce." Diana responded. "And you may call me Diana."

"Well, Diana. I'm very glad that you were able to make it here tonight." Bruce stated. "The Justice League being here is truly an honor."

"We do anything we can to help out those in need Bruce." She commented. "What brings someone such as you out here tonight?"

Bruce thought about how he should answer for a moment. He didn't know if he should deceive her completely or not. Perhaps in this instance, a little honesty to the story would go a long way. Especially since she could look up the name Bruce Wayne and find too many ties that could potentially explain any lies or perhaps point her towards his mission. "Well there are a few reasons honestly, Diana." She nodded her head to let him know to continue. "First of all, if you were to look me up, you'd see that I've had some tragedy in my life as a child. I like to help out Gotham with the prosperity of my company whenever I can help. Secondly Jim, the commissioner was actually there for me when my parents were taken from me. He's a good man, and as the commissioner now, I want to help him improve the city. My money can help him to make the changes that he thinks will do that. Also, his daughter Barbara is dating my son. I brought her here with me tonight."

"The redheaded young woman you arrived with?" She asked. He nodded in confirmation. She had to admit that he wasn't what she expected him to be. Even though he smelled of alcohol, he was easily carrying on the conversation with her. She could see why J'onn had smiled when Bruce spoke with him earlier. The man was quite charming actually, and if he was being honest with her just now, he seemed to be a good man. She found that she wanted to know more about him. She was curious about what had happened with his parents, but didn't want to pry into the man's past unless he wanted to divulge it. As they continued their conversation, she found it difficult to believe that he was a playboy, as John had referred to her.

Bruce found that he was actually enjoying his conversation with Diana. She wasn't the dumb airhead or looking to take advantage of his having money. It was refreshing to carry on a polite conversation with someone that contained a real shred of intelligence. He was enjoying the conversation so much that he eventually lost track of time, and decided to forego introducing himself with the others of the Justice League. Instead he decided to do something slightly different. "Diana, I don't know if this is your sort of affair, but would you do me the honor of joining me for a dance?"

Diana was caught off guard by the request. She found the man to be interesting, but did she actually want to go dancing with him? She put on a small smile as she debated within herself what to do. He took in her body language and could read the indecision within her, and he decided to try and push her towards a choice. "If you'd like to lead instead of a mere mortal man, I'd still like to dance with you."

Diana was surprised that the words "mere mortal man" came out of his mouth without any hint of disdain on them. She thought that any male would take offense to being thought of as that, and the fact that he was willing to allow the woman to lead had clearly taken her off balance. She knew then what she wanted to do. "You don't have to allow me to lead, Bruce." She started. "The thought that you would be willing to allow me to do so is enough for me to accept your offer." Diana gave him her hand, and allowed him to lead her out onto the dance floor. A slow melody filled the room as a new song began when Diana placed one hand on Bruce's shoulder while the other held his hand. Bruce placed his one free hand on Diana's hip, and they began dancing to the music. Diana was pleasantly surprised that she was having such a wonderful time. Perhaps she had found a friend in the real world aside from the heroes of the Justice League. Dancing with Bruce was relaxing yet fun at the same time. She felt as though it would be nice to dance with Bruce all night long if that were possible. They continued dancing around as everyone was beginning to take notice of the playboy and the princess in the middle of the ball room. Just before the song ended, everyone's attention was altered however when a masked man came crashing through the doors of the cooking area.


	8. Chapter 8: Meeting With the Commish

Diana let go of Bruce so that she could turn around to see who had burst into the ballroom. She found a masked thug stumbling and trying to regain his balance. Before anyone had more of a chance to react, a black object came flying through the air out from behind the still stumbling man. It quickly caught the man, and wrapped around his legs tackling him to the ground. There was a line attached to it trailing out the doorway that began to retract, which started pulling the thug back to the doorway. When he reached the door, everyone could see that it was Batman on the other end of the line. He grabbed hold of the thug by the throat and dragged him back through the kitchen area where each man disappeared from sight. Diana eased out of her defensive stance and looked around to find that Bruce Wayne was standing behind her. To her surprise, he wasn't giving off the feeling that he was afraid. "Are you alright?" She asked him.

"Yes." Bruce answered. "I had the best person next to me for protection in an Amazon warrior." Bruce smiled sheepishly at Diana, and she briefly turned her attention back to the doorway again. Something didn't add up. Batman was too busy to join in the festivities, but his version of busy way dealing with what looked like nothing more than a common criminal? Diana was really quite curious about that. However when she noticed Kal not making any move to follow, she returned her focus to the man standing next to her.

Eventually all of the people at the gala returned to their normal routines. Music began to play again and conversations started up as if nothing had just happened. Bruce continued talking to Diana as she still seemed to be interested in him, but her thoughts were still focused more on the man in black that had burst in after a criminal. "So, what's it like working with one Gotham's own personal hero?" Bruce asked her.

Diana blinked her eyes a few times before fully focusing her attention back to what Bruce had asked. "Who, Batman?" She asked before receiving a nod in confirmation. "He's quite mysterious actually. No one really knows all that much about him. My opinion of him is that he's frustrating and arrogant, but he still brings other qualities to the team that can't be dismissed. Kal believes he is a valuable asset to the League, and I have no reason to doubt Kal's opinion. He knows Batman the best out of all of us."

"Really?" Bruce asked while chuckling. "I think he looks like a lunatic in that outfit he was wearing. He's obviously a man that has to have some issues to do what he does every night."

Diana was surprised and slightly offended by Bruce's reaction towards her teammate. "Does that mean you feel that way about all members of the Justice League?" She asked.

"No no, not at all." Bruce back peddled. "It's just from what I've read and heard, the Batman spends his nights beating any criminal to a bloody pulp from the shadows almost like he was a ghost. The rest of you aren't afraid to be out in public and you seem to follow the rules of the law more so than the Batman does. I mean look at tonight for an example. He's not even here with you. It looks like he'd rather be out there chasing the scum on the streets than be here for a noble cause."

Bruce did make a valid point, Diana thought to herself, but he still wasn't completely accurate. "I still believe deep down that he is a good man." She retorted. "Perhaps his path is a darker one, but in the end he never kills and his end goals are in line with any other hero."

Bruce took a moment to absorb Diana's response. She was right. So he decided not to push the topic anymore and raised his hands in the air with a simple smile on his face, conceding to losing that debate with her before changing the topic. Diana continued her conversation with Bruce for a few more minutes before other socialites decided that they'd apparently had enough private time together. There were some jealous single women that wanted Bruce's attention, but he brushed them all off quickly and kept his focus on Diana. She began to wonder about the playboy image that John had warned her about, and just how accurate that was. A playboy after all would have enjoyed being sought after, and not focused on just one woman. Diana was certain that she enjoyed talking to Bruce, but she didn't plan on dating him. Yet he remained there with her up until he received a call on his cell phone from someone named Dick. Diana tried not to eavesdrop on the conversation, but she'd heard enough of Bruce's responses to realize that he was going to leave after hanging up.

Sure enough as soon as Bruce put the phone away he gently grabbed Diana's hand, raised it up and softly brushed his lips against it. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I have to leave, but I wanted you to know that it was truly a pleasure speaking with you, and an honor to have danced with you as well." He said. "If you're ever back in Gotham, please look me up. I'd love to take you out to lunch or perhaps take you to see some of the sights in Gotham if you'd be interested."

Diana smiled. "You're welcome Bruce. It was a pleasure for me as well, and if I'm ever back in Gotham, I will be sure to do so." She watched as Bruce let go of her hand and turned to make his exit through the crowd. He casually waved to anyone trying to delay his exit, and soon disappeared from sight. Diana was quickly approached by Superman, who had seen the entire interaction between Bruce and her. "You two seemed to be quite chummy." He commented as he stood next to her.

"Bruce was an interesting person to meet." Diana responded. "What are your thoughts on him?"

"I'd be careful if I were you Diana." Superman answered. "He's not the type of person that you should be willing to trust easily. He's known as almost a womanizer. He squanders the money that was handed to him when his parents were taken from him as a child. According to some news reports, that stunted his development in some areas of his life. Especially when it comes to his personal life. He's also known as an adrenaline junkie, always looking for the next near death defying stunt to pull."

"Thank you for the warning Kal." Diana said. "I'll be sure to keep my guard up if I'm around him again. What about the event that happened with Batman? Shouldn't we get an update from him on his status at the very least?"

"Batman isn't the type to want help when it involves Gotham City." Kal explained. "We'll ask him during the next meeting, but otherwise I'd suggest leaving that incident alone. Batman is hard enough to work with at times as it is without trying to pull information out of him before he wants to provide it."

Diana nodded after hearing Kal's explanation, but her thoughts were more so looking towards her own course of action than his words. She spotted Commissioner Gordon once again, and refocused her thoughts on getting some time to discuss Batman in more detail with the Commissioner. She slowly mingled her way through the now beginning to thin crowd, and asked Gordon if she could meet with him later to discuss some thoughts and concerns that she had. Gordon seemed somewhat skeptical at first, but he informed her to meet him on top of the GCPD building where they'd first met and provided her with an approximate time. By the time Gordon and Diana had parted ways again, the crowd had cut in half as people were now making their exits so they could head home for the night. Even members of the Justice League had departed by this time. Diana took full advantage of not having to be on monitor duty until the next afternoon by deciding to stay behind. She went back into the main lobby of the building and requested a room. After receiving a key card and making her way to her room, she quickly changed into her uniform before flying out the window and heading to the rooftop of police headquarters. Diana wondered if she would beat the Commissioner there, but upon landing, that answer was quickly addressed. There was the white haired man in a brown trench coat, waiting with a coffee in hand. Diana made her approach easily known to the Commissioner. Batman had startled him enough with his silent arrivals. "Hello again Wonder Woman." Gordon greeted her as she touched down in front of him.

Thank you for seeing me Commissioner." Diana responded. "Please, call me Diana."

"Very well Diana, you can call me Jim." Gordon returned. "So, what is it that you'd like to discuss?"

She was slightly surprised at his directness, but then again he had dealt with Batman for a few years now. Perhaps that was the way he believed was customary with super heroes. She took a deep breath and began. "Actually Jim, I would like to discuss a mutual acquaintance of ours. I'm trying to learn more about Batman, and I'm sure you're aware that information is difficult to get from the man himself."

"Forgive me Diana, but before I would give you an answer to that, I have to ask why you have such an interest in him?" Jim asked.

"He is the only warrior that I've fought beside where I know almost nothing about." Diana explained. "Where I come from, trust among fellow warriors can be the key to being victorious or not. I've gotten to know the other members of the Justice League, but Batman seems to want to remain distant. I want to be able to trust every member of the team."

While what she said was true, it wasn't the main reason for her research. She had an ever growing curiosity about Batman that needed to be fulfilled with information and research. This answer was honest enough to hopefully get the answers she sought from Gordon.

"Well Diana that seems fair enough." Jim responded. "Although, I'm not sure that I will be entirely too helpful for you. I don't have any personal information on the man, and certainly don't know who he is underneath the mask." Jim looked for a hint of disappointment on Diana's face, and when he couldn't find anything other than her undivided attention, he decided to continue. "When I was a detective is the first time that Batman had been witnessed by some of Gotham's worst. The city was overrun by the mob at the time. There were dirty cops, lawyers, judges, and any other government official that would benefit the mob's activities that kept the good people from rising up. Gotham was incredibly violent back then. No one feared the police. After the Batman sightings started happening though, the police began finding criminals tied upside-down, hanging from buildings or lamp posts. They all said the same thing when we'd apprehend them. That there was a giant bat shaped like a man attacking them. These gifts were all left with condemning evidence of the crimes they were caught committing, so arresting them was never an issue. We knew there was someone or something out there putting fear into the criminal element. It was honestly a welcomed thing by cops like myself back then. Anything to help this city become safe again would be alright. Of course vigilantism is illegal itself, so once victims began to ID the Batman saving them, the current Commissioner couldn't ignore this anymore, and ordered the police force to arrest Batman on site. Over the course of the next year, the arrests began to move up from lower level criminals to the mob bosses themselves. When that happened, we had a new DA that seemed to be as bold and incorruptible as Batman."

"Are you referring to Harvey Dent?" She asked.

"The very same." Jim answered before continuing. "With Batman bringing criminals in for justice and Dent making sure that justice was served, things began to change. The dirty cops were getting caught and put away themselves, and for the first time in years, it seemed as though Gotham was beginning to get cleaned up. I was promoted to Lieutenant at the time and headed up the Major Crimes Unit. Batman seemed to grow to trust me, as he would show up unexpectedly to discuss the happenings in the city with me. We slowly began to work together, providing each other with useful tips to help get to the criminals more effectively. Then the Joker appeared. It wasn't long after that when the mob had kidnapped Harvey, and Batman went after him. The current Commissioner was also killed by the Joker to distract us from the mob, but you can't deter Batman once he is focused on something. He ended up locating where the mob was holding Dent, and he went in to rescue Harvey. I don't know the exact details of what happened, but somewhere along the lines, an explosion occurred, and Harvey was close enough that it left him disfigured. Batman more aggressively went after the mob like never before after that. I was asked to take on the role of Commissioner, and when I did, one of my first acts was to put the bat signal on the rooftop here. That allowed me to have a means of contacting him, and also to remind the city that he was out there every night."

"What happened with the mobsters and Mr. Dent?" Diana asked.

"Well, of course Batman tracked down the kingpins of the mobsters." Jim explained. "That is when he met face to face with the Joker for the first time. Batman ended up in a violent battle with the Joker while the mob kingpins ran off and went into hiding. Batman eventually was able to bring in the Joker, but Joker had blown up a few buildings and killed a large number of innocent people as well. Harvey lost his mind to a dual personality and became Two-Face when there was no justice served onto his kidnappers. Over the course of the last couple of years, it's been almost like a game of back and forth for control of the city. Whenever we think we are getting ahead, there seems to be another super villain to face. If it's not the Joker then its Penguin, Catwoman, Croc, the Riddler, Mr. Freeze, or who knows who else. What I've learned about Batman from my time working with him though is that he'll never give up, no matter the circumstances. He may be breaking the law by being a vigilante, but he is saving this city one day at a time as well. He's also brilliant and a great detective. Probably the best deductive mind I've ever met. I think you have a very good teammate working alongside you in Batman. You should be glad he is on your team."

The Commissioner was interrupted by a call on his cell phone. He answered, and after hearing what was going on in another area of the city he looked back up at Diana. She knew that their conversation had come to its end. "Thank you for seeing me Jim. I appreciate your time and wish you the best with this city and its people." Diana said.

"You're welcome Diana and thank you for coming out tonight. Also please thank the rest of the Justice League for me. You and your team helped us to get the donations we needed."

Diana shook the Commissioner's hand and took flight back to her hotel room. She wanted to take a shower before getting some rest and finding a means back to the Watchtower. Diana flew back in through the window that she had left her room from earlier and sat at the edge of the bed. It was dark in the room, but her eyes adjusted quickly. She reached down and removed her boots, setting them next to the bed before making her way to the bathroom. She flipped on the light switch and stood before the mirror for a moment. She thought about the story Commissioner Gordon had told her. He seemed very confident in Batman and all the good that he'd seemed to have done in just a few years. Sure there were some super villains to deal with now that weren't there before, but according to Jim, Batman had done more good for this city than not. He didn't even bring up the brutality with which Batman utilized against the criminal element. She now could better see and understand why Batman relied on fear after listening to Jim. He had told her that the criminals weren't afraid of the police, and perhaps Batman needed to instill that fear once again to bring the honest and good city officials back some of the power they needed to protect the innocent. That had to be just the tip of the iceberg with what made Batman who he was, and she definitely wanted to find out more.

Diana stepped over to the shower and turned on and adjusting it until the temperature was to her liking. She then removed her uniform and stepped into the now steaming hot shower. She enjoyed the hot water as it pelted against her muscles, causing them to loosen and eased any tension she had away. She just stood in there under the cascading water, enjoying the personal time that seemed to be such a rarity for any member of the Justice League ever since they'd teamed up. Each member surely had to enjoy some of the smaller things in life such as a nice hot shower. Eventually Diana worked up the motivation necessary to wash herself before stepping out of the shower. She dried herself off and wrapped a towel around her body and another towel around her head to help expedite her hair to dry more quickly. She didn't have any clothes for the night, but Diana never had a problem with sleeping in the nude before so she wasn't unaccustomed to doing it again. She opened the bathroom door and turned off the light before returning to the bedroom area and fixing her eyes on the oh so inviting bed waiting just before her.

~~ Batcave Two hours earlier ~~

Bruce arrived back home in less than half an hour after he'd ended his conversation with Diana. She had left him in awe by her presence that evening. She was not a stuck up princess in such a setting. He'd almost thought that she would fall back into a more royalty driven persona, but she'd remained the same person as she'd always been when around Batman. She still gave off an aura of being a completely independent woman, but at the same time she remained friendly towards anyone. She didn't come off as unapproachable at all. He found it peculiar that no one seemed to have the courage to walk up to her aside from the other League members. She was so friendly in fact that he'd unintentionally dropped his playboy fop act when he spoke to her. It was almost as if he subconsciously couldn't bring himself to lie to her like that. Being Batman was a large portion of his personality so that wasn't lying to her so much, but the playboy was just a decoy act. He'd concocted it only to serve as a deterrent for attracting attention to his nocturnal activities. Not having the desire to show her that act was surprising to himself. He wasn't disappointed though and actually enjoyed his conversation with her. He was also more than surprised both that she'd actually allowed him to dance with her, and when she also allowed him to lead. He'd expected that while she might have been willing to dance with him, he thought she certainly wouldn't allow him to lead her. If Bruce were honest with himself, he'd have had to admit that he actually enjoyed himself at the gala, and that was something that had never occurred before. It actually concerned and frightened him a little bit.

Alfred had noticed it as well even though he'd remained in the car the whole evening. How he was able to read Bruce so well was truly a mystery that even the great Batman couldn't solve. Alfred literally peppered Bruce with questions about what had developed inside the ball room between himself and the princess. Bruce eventually conceded to the old man's questioning and informed him that Bruce Wayne had danced with Diana. Alfred of course didn't buy any of what Bruce tried to supply him with. As soon as the car pulled up to Wayne Manor, Bruce jumped out immediately in order to avoid any more questions. He almost sprinted down to the cave where Dick was waiting for him, and had already changed back into the Nightwing suit. Bruce moved to the computer and quickly looked over the logs that Dick had typed in before spinning out of the chair and heading towards the locker area to suit up. Bruce knew that time still would mean everything, if his Justice League teammates were to actually call in for information about the perpetrator that had "crashed" the party, he had to be available online as soon as possible as well as have the Batsuit on in any chance for a requested meeting that he couldn't talk his way out of. Inside the ballroom, Bruce knew when he had to hit a button which remotely caused his cell phone to ring and open a channel to the bat suit. He couldn't take any chances on super hearing not picking up a voice at the other end of the line. He'd provided Dick with lines to be stated so as to seem like a normal father and son conversation. Bruce hit the button to initiate this portion of the plan when he noticed Shayera and John heading for the exit. His phone rang, and his "conversation" took place with Dick, affording him an acceptable reason to leave the gala. When he was suited up and left the locker area, Barbara was now standing next to Dick, and in her own Batsuit. "What do you think you two are doing?" Bruce asked growling at the surprise standing in front of him.

"We're going to either cover the east side for you or head to Bludhaven." Dick answered for them both. "Which would you prefer Bruce?"

Bruce hated it when he had no power in any situation. Especially when it came to who he allowed in his city. "Fine, you two cover the east side, but if you see any sign of the Joker, call me immediately and do not under any circumstances engage him." Bruce instructed. He wanted Barbara to be here for her first night back patrolling. As bad as Gotham was, Bludhaven was worse, and that was nowhere for someone to be that hadn't been patrolling regularly in quite some time. With that settled, Nightwing and Batgirl each took a bat-cycle and headed off together. Each was eager for Barbara to get her feet wet again. Bruce went over to the computer once again to perform some last minute checks before he headed out to patrol himself. Alfred was coming down with a steaming cup of coffee, but didn't even make it down the stairs completely when he saw Bruce climbing into the Batmobile, and quickly pulling away out of the Batcave. Alfred went over to the computer, and set the tray holding Bruce's coffee down as he looked at the screen to find out what had caused him to leave without even a sip of coffee. Such an act was not customary for Bruce. He always liked to have some coffee before heading out to help keep him sharp during patrol.

"Oh dear." Alfred said aloud to no one as he saw the cause of his surrogate son's abrupt departure.

~~ Present time ~~

Diana pulled the covers from their neatly tucked positions as she was more than ready for a good night's sleep. Her movement was halted though as she felt a breeze coming from behind her. She turned around to see the window she'd used earlier open. Didn't she close it when she had returned, she thought to herself as she walked over to it. She looked around for a moment at the city lights before sliding the window shut and locking it. Diana turned around and headed towards the bathroom, convinced that she had merely forgotten to shut the window earlier. She had been deep in thoughts from her discussion with the Commissioner, and something as simple as closing a window could easily have slipped from her mind. Besides, she was eight floors up from the street and no one knew that she was here. She hadn't even planned to stay the night in the city, so how would anyone else know about it, she thought to herself. Arriving at the bathroom door, she reached up and removed the towel from her head, gently rubbing it against her hair as she attempted to increase how dry her hair was just a bit more before escaping into a cozy slumber. Once satisfied with her hair being just a little damp, she took the towel and tossed it into the bathroom, and walked back over to her bed once more as she grabbed the towel that was tucked around her body. "I wouldn't take that off just yet, Princess." Her unexpected guest announced to make her aware of his presence, jarring her from her movement just in time to keep the towel up and covering herself.


	9. Chapter 9: Going to the Manor

"Hera Batman." Diana gasped. "You could have knocked first."

Batman stood there for a moment just taking in the scene before him. Diana was barely covered at all by the towel she was wearing, and despite his best efforts, he couldn't fight his male urge to lower his view for a moment. He was never more thankful for the lenses in his cowl than at times when the beautiful Amazon was in front of him. Even the great indomitable will of Batman succumbed to the beautiful view staring right back at him occasionally. Finally after realizing he was just standing there staring at her, he cleared his throat. "What are you still doing in my city Princess?" He asked as he ignored her complaint. "The charity ended hours ago. You should have returned with the rest of the League."

Diana had to think of an acceptable answer quickly to appease Batman while at the same time not letting him in on why she was actually still there. "I wanted to learn more about Gotham City, and stayed behind to speak with some city officials."

"So you talked to Gordon then." Batman stated while crossing his arms over his chest.

"How did you…" Diana started to ask before mumbling the rest. "Of course, you're Batman. You know everything."

Batman smirked slightly. "Not everything Princess. I still don't know the real reason why you stayed in my city….yet."

Diana adjusted the towel so that she could sit down on the bed without revealing herself to her unexpected guest. She'd been caught snooping around Gotham by Batman, and she was trying to think of a way to throw him off her scent. She thought quickly of her interactions during the time that Batman was willing to allow the League into his city. The only topic she could come up with was Bruce Wayne as the only viable option. Diana sighed loud enough so that Batman would clearly hear it. "If you must know, I was thinking of reaching out to a fellow citizen. Perhaps you know him?" When Batman remained silent, she decided to inform him. "His name is Bruce Wayne."

Batman was temporarily thrown off by Diana's reasoning for remaining in Gotham. She was basically a beacon of truth and honesty. He could also tell from her body language that she wasn't being dishonest, even if she was still hiding something from him. But he couldn't believe that she would have any interest in Bruce Wayne. Had he really been that far off his playboy persona when he was around her? "Wayne?" He questioned. "Why would you be interested in a man like that?"

"He was very intriguing, and I haven't that many in man's world to consider as a friend." Diana explained. "Bruce was interesting, and didn't approach me in a manner that I had expected from the little bit of information I was informed of."

"Wayne is a womanizing fop Princess." Batman responded. "He isn't worth your time."

"Let me be the judge of that Batman." Diana argued. She was slightly upset that Batman wasn't trusting her judgment of character, and that actually solidified her decision to approach Bruce Wayne in the morning. "Anyways Batman, I promise that I won't interfere with your patrol while I'm in the city for the rest of the night. I'd actually like to get some sleep, so if you don't mind please let yourself out." Diana then turned her back to him and dropped the towel before climbing into the bed and getting under the covers. When Batman noticed that the towel was falling away, he quickly turned the other way as he tried to respect her privacy. He was flabbergasted at the moment. Dick and Barbara had gotten their way against him, and now Diana was doing the same thing. He wasn't going to be able to argue with her anymore in her present condition. He was actually struggling to maintain his concentration at the moment, so he grunted in defeat and returned to the window, opening it back up and exiting. Hopefully patrol would be eventful as he now had plenty of frustration in need of being worked out of his system.

Diana laid in bed staring up at the ceiling. Batman had gotten under her skin once again. She couldn't understand why he was questioning her judge of character. In thinking about it, she realized that Batman also confirmed the description that both Kal and John had given her about Bruce. She would have to perform some research on the man, but she now wanted to meet up with Bruce again to not only gain a friend, but to prove Batman wrong. She believed that Bruce was not the man that had been described to her by her teammates. He just didn't seem to be as shallow as he was being portrayed, and at the very least he didn't act that way towards her. She began to think about her next course of action regarding Bruce, and closed her eyes as she awaited sleep to grasp her. She now had a full morning in order to seek out Bruce.

Batman grappled his way through the night sky completely flustered. He wondered just when he seemed to lose control of his surroundings. Was it when Dick brought Tim to him, or did Diana simply have an effect on him that others could plainly see but he couldn't? Alfred had caught on to an apparent change in his demeanor in the car earlier. He shook his head trying to regain his focus as he patrolled the city.

Being flustered as he was didn't turn out to be a good thing for Gotham's criminals. Batman was seemingly out for blood on this night. He'd stopped two attempted robberies so far and one attempted rape. There was still no sign of the Joker for the time being. Batman was on edge even more with that thought as with the Joker, this would only be the calm before the storm for when that clown would find a way to take advantage of a situation. Batman was forced to focus his thoughts and attention on something he noticed down below on the streets. There was a group of thugs breaking into the back of an electronics factory. He moved in silently for a closer look at the criminals. As he observed them, Batman counted at least ten perpetrators moving about, and all of them were armed with semi automatic weapons. He snuck up through the shadows, being certain not to get caught by any of the criminals. Once he was close enough, Batman waited for a few moments until an opportunity presented itself, and he grabbed hold of one of the thugs from behind in a choke hold. He held on tight while hitting a pressure point which prevented the thug from fighting back. Batman took the now unconscious thug and placed him where the rest of the crew would easily spot him while Batman found a sufficient place to hide himself from view. Sure enough, it only took a minute before someone had spotted the unconscious man. That man called out to the rest of the crew, and they all huddled towards him. Batman waited just long enough for the thugs to start looking for answers when he leapt into the middle of them. He worked quickly disarming the thugs with a series of strategic kicks, elbows, and fist strikes. He moved quickly in between the thugs, making certain that none of them could pick up a gun again and have a clear shot at him. He kicked one thug in the gut and rolled himself over top of that man who had hunched over trying to catch his breath. As soon as Batman's feet hit the ground, he launched into a roundhouse kick which knocked another thug unconscious. Batman's motion from that kick placed him right in front of another thug that had picked up one of the guns. A swift elbow to the forearm stifled any chance for a shot to be fired, and another elbow left a nose broken.

With two thugs down, Batman pulled out a batarang and a smoke bomb. He smashed the bomb at his feet while throwing the batarang at another thug. The batarang struck true, hitting the thug in the hand. The smoke had sufficiently filled the area by that time, and Batman engaged his infrared vision. Using that to his advantage, it was only another thirty seconds before the other eight men had joined the first two in an unconscious state. Batman had delivered bone breaking strikes on two noses, a shin, two forearms, and a hand. Four other thugs had received separated shoulders and an eye watering strike to the face by the time the fight had ended. He made quick to tie them up, leaving all of the criminals hanging upside down. Once the thugs were all secured, Batman shot a grapple into the night sky. Little did he know that the entire fight was being watched by a large man in the shadows. That man chuckled quietly before turning and walking away from the scene. He'd seen what he wanted to from the thugs that he'd hired for the "break in". He discovered that Batman would be a challenge, but he would enjoy taking care of Batman as Ra's al Ghul had instructed him to.

It was almost 4:00AM after that confrontation. Batman decided to head back to the Batcave at that point. He had logs to complete from the night's events, and then would need to be up early just in case a certain Amazon Princess decided to keep true to what she'd told him, and sought out Bruce Wayne in the morning. She had monitor duty starting at 3:00PM that afternoon, so she would likely find a way to approach Wayne in the morning before she would look for a means to return to the Watchtower. He figured there were only two possible options for her to use. There wasn't a sole in Gotham City that didn't know where Wayne Manor was located as well as Wayne Tower. Bruce decided to limit the options and would simply have Alfred cancel all meetings for the day. This would force Diana to approach at the Manor. If he could get her to go there, then it would also be more feasible for him to quickly retreat to the Batcave. From there he could be in the Batwing within five minutes. He wanted to head up to the Watchtower so that he could continue working on the teleportation equipment, and that would provide Diana with the transportation she would need.

By the time Batman arrived back at the Batcave, he noticed that Barbara's costume was already hung back up. No news from the younger two members of the Batclan would be considered good news by Batman. Especially with the Batgirl suit in the cave. They had obviously already returned from their patrol. That knowledge allowed a slight tightness inside Bruce's chest ease for him. He knew that it was the worry of a parent he was experiencing. He was actually very proud of the two of them for what they'd done. Of course he would never let them know that he was proud of his students. Bruce sat down in front of the Cray supercomputer, and pulled up the logs Dick had updated. There was nothing out of the ordinary that Bruce could find, so he added his own logs to the night's activity listings. By the time he was finished it was close to 5AM. Bruce sighed as he knew it would be a long day with Wonder Woman potentially seeking him out. He stood and walked over to the locker area and stripped out of the Batsuit before jumping into the shower quickly and dragging his tired body up to the master bedroom for what little time he'd had left for sleep.

~~ 9AM ~~

Diana was up and dressed in her uniform. She managed to get a few hours of sleep after Batman's abrupt intrusion. It still amazed her how a man with no powers was able to sneak in unnoticed by a Meta with enhanced senses. She grabbed her dress from the previous night and carried it down with her to the lobby where she returned her room card key. Being in uniform in the middle of the city during the day, Diana stuck out like a sore thumb and was attracting a lot of unwanted attention. It wasn't long before the paparazzi began hounding her for any information that they could. She could just make out some of the shouted questions asking about her association with the Prince of Gotham. She tried to ignore it, but once the question was asked, more and more paparazzi joined in wanting to know the answers. Diana would just take flight, but she was actually looking for a means to find Bruce so that she could reach out to him. Finally after hearing the question for what seemed like the hundredth time, Diana was fed up and she stopped cold while turning to face the cameras. "I'm only going to say this once for all of you." She started. "Mr. Wayne asked me for a dance last night, and I accepted. There is nothing more than that between us. When we parted we didn't even provide each other with a means of contacting one another. Aside from that, my personal life is just that, personal. I will not address any more questions regarding it."

Diana then took flight, knowing that if she were to ask how to contact Bruce, the media would take that information and run with it. Before anyone would know it, there would be speculation about nuptials and when they would be having children. Diana wasn't interested in hearing about any of that. She'd dealt with enough speculation regarding her and Superman. It was bad enough that Batman was hot on her trail regarding why she'd remained in Gotham last night. Diana flew around until she spotted a police officer. She flew down and asked if the officer would inform her of where she could find Bruce Wayne. The police officer gave her the two most likely scenarios. Diana thanked the police officer, and then took flight again heading for the Palisades. Once she'd arrived in that section of the city, she was astounded at the massive size of the home where Bruce resided. In looking over the security, she could tell that video ID would be required to gain entrance from the gates unless she flew over them. Not wanting to appear rude, she reached over and pressed the intercom button. After a few moments the screen lit up showing the face of an elderly man with a pencil thin mustache. "May I help you Miss?" Asked the man.

"Yes." Diana answered. "I'm looking for a Bruce Wayne. Does he reside here?"

"Indeed he does madam." Alfred responded. "Might I inquire as to the business of the visit that you are requesting from Master Wayne?"

"After dancing with me last night, Mr. Wayne offered the opportunity to see him again for lunch and a tour of the city." Diana explained. "I would like to discuss this with him."

"Just one moment, Miss." Alfred stated before the screen went black. A few seconds later, Diana heard the gates unlatching before they swung open. She hovered above the ground and glided up to the stairs which lead to the main entrance of the Manor. She was shocked at how large the building seemed up close. She reached up to knock on the door, but the older man had already begun opening the door. He bowed slightly while gesturing for her to enter. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Wonder Woman."

She smiled at the older man's greeting. "The pleasure is mine. Please, call me Diana."

Alfred scoffed at that notion. "That would never do, Miss." Alfred stated. "Proper etiquette dictates that would be poor manners. However Miss, you may call me Alfred. Would you like some refreshments while I inform Master Wayne of your arrival?"

Diana shook her head to indicate she was fine, and then followed Alfred to a room that resembled a library with all the books throughout it. Diana was instantly awestruck and slowly made her way around the room as she investigated all the books that Bruce apparently owned. She never noticed as Alfred slipped away with merely a sound. As Diana looked through the titles of the books, she stumbled across a section apparently reserved for Greek mythology. Her interest was piqued there as she pulled out one book regarding the Greek Gods. She began flipping through pages and mentally noted all of the errors that man's world had apparently come to when the book was written.

Alfred opened the doors to the master bedroom with a hot cup of coffee in hand. He set it down on one of the nightstands and went over to the windows, pulling the drapes open in order to rouse the master of the house. Bruce was under the covers entirely, so he didn't notice the sunlight protruding into the room. He did however hear Alfred pulling open the drapes. Bruce wondered what time it was as his mind was still on autopilot from waking just moments ago. He peaked out from under the covers in the direction of the clock, but Alfred was standing in the way. "It's nearly 10:00 sir." Alfred said knowing full well what Bruce was looking for. "I apologize for waking you so early, but you have a guest downstairs sir."

Bruce's brain began functioning normally as he instantly knew who this guest would be. He shot up into a seated potion, tossing the blankets to the side. Bruce scurried over to the bathroom and quickly jumped into the shower without even adjusting the water temperature. He scrubbed everything quickly and was back out drying himself while grabbing an electric razor. Within three minutes he'd returned from the bathroom to find his bed made and clothes laid out for him. Bruce quickly pulled on the black dress pants, white shirt and blue tie. He then grabbed the cup of coffee and chugged it down in three massive gulps. Alfred was there to take the mug from him. "I will inform the Miss that you will be but a moment Master Bruce." Alfred stated before turning on his heels and walking out of the room. "She is waiting for you in the library sir."

As soon as Alfred closed the door, Bruce went back into the bathroom and quickly brushed his teeth. He gave himself a once over, wondering why he was so concerned about his appearance to a woman that Wayne had only met once. Also he thought about the fact that this particular woman should want nothing more from the fop persona that to be an acquaintance. Still for an unexplained reason, he'd wanted to look as presentable as possible. He looked in the mirror checking to see if the bags under his eyes would require any attention. They weren't too obvious, so he decided that he looked good enough to greet his guest. Bruce walked out of the bedroom and down the stairs to the main floor. He went down a hallway and around a corner to the library room where he instantly stopped in the doorway. He stayed there quietly looking at Diana from behind her as she seemed to be occupied by a book in her hand. Seeing her standing there fascinated him for some reason. There seemed to be more and more unexplainable reactions to her presence that Bruce couldn't quite understand what the cause was. He'd been with some of the most beautiful women in the world, and while Diana was exquisitely beautiful herself, he didn't believe that just her looks would get a reaction from him like she was causing. After a moment or two, he shook his head to focus on the task at hand. He started walking again into the library towards his guest. "Diana, it certainly is a pleasure to see you so soon." Bruce said in his playboy fop voice. He had a grand smile plastered on his face. "I was afraid that our schedules wouldn't permit us to see each other again for quite some time."

Diana turned around and looked at Bruce. "I hope you don't mind Bruce." She responded with a smile on her face as she gave him a once over. She wondered to herself why this man was dressed in a shirt and tie just to greet a guest he'd only met once. However he certainly had a look that accentuated his physique well. The man had broad shoulders, and seemed to be very fit.

Bruce's smile grew as large as the Cheshire cat's as he watched Diana give him a look over. "I never mind when I have a beautiful woman such as yourself coming to visit me. I must have left a good impression on you last night."

Diana was less than impressed by that comment. "Actually Bruce, I wanted to take you up on your offer for lunch and a tour of the city." Diana explained. "In truth, I haven't many friends outside of the Justice League from man's world. Everyone else that has met me has only done so out of obligation or they treat me as though I were royalty and place me on top of some pedestal. You are the first and only one thus far that has talked to me in a manner that I believe to be similar to if I was just a random normal person."

Bruce was taken aback at that stance from Diana. She merely wanted to pursue some friendly relationships outside of the League that treated her as a normal human instead of a goddess or royalty. He thought about that for a moment, and the lecherous playboy smile faded as he debated within himself if this path was a good idea. After almost a minute of silence, Diana started to become uncomfortable and felt a little awkward. "I have to say Diana; it would be an honor to be the first of your non-super hero friends." He responded in a voice that was neither the playboy nor the Batman. Diana smiled at his response, and that smile made him believe that he'd made a good choice. After all, he could help her come to know more about the differences she would come to experience while living in man's world, and if it were him then there would be no reason to worry that someone would try and take advantage of her naiveté. "I'd think a good start would be to first share some breakfast Diana. Would you like to join me?"

Diana set the book back into the shelf and walked over to Bruce while lacing her hand around the crook of his arm. "Breakfast sounds like a wonderful idea." She said smiling.

Bruce led her into the kitchen area where Alfred was busying himself preparing a meal for the two of them. Little did either of them know that the old man was actually off in the distance listening in on the conversation. Bruce helped Diana to a seat and she watched in amazement as the butler worked his magic around the kitchen. What he had mixed together seemed odd at first to Diana until the dish was served. She took one bite and moaned in pleasure from the flavor. "Mmmm, Alfred this is delicious. I noticed you used strawberries with the eggs. What is the dish called?" She asked.

"It is simply a Strawberry Mint Omelet Miss." Alfred answered. "I've found that the strawberries actually pair rather well with the eggs, and I use the mint to add extra flavor."

"You are certainly a master of your craft Alfred." Diana said after gulping down another bite. "I've never had anything so delicious before. I'm surprised you ever leave the house with meals such as this Bruce."

Bruce chuckled as Alfred set the meal in front of him as well before offering Diana a second helping, which she eagerly accepted. They sat there enjoying the meal and company as they carried on a casual conversation about nothing particularly important. Diana asked many questions about the city that Bruce lived in, and Bruce casually answered her questions as he pointed out good places to go for anyone wanting to learn more about the city and its history. Eventually the discussion turned to when they would try and go through the tour Bruce had offered. Diana shared the schedule for monitor duty as well as a direct line for Bruce to contact her on the Watchtower. He promised to look over his schedule and find some available time where they could get together again.

After a couple of hours had passed spending time with Alfred and Bruce, Diana left taking flight and heading back towards the city. She'd had a wonderful time. At first Bruce seemed to be putting up a front, but he'd quickly dropped it and had turned into the charming man that she'd shared a dance with the night before. Alfred was like a godsend. Such a polite and proper gentleman, and Diana could see where Bruce had picked up some of his manners. She'd discovered that Alfred had been caring for Bruce since his birth, and took on a more intricate role when Bruce's parents had passed away. During the course of their conversation, she'd come to realize that Bruce's parents were a topic that she should refrain from bringing up if possible. Bruce and Alfred both stiffened up each time they were mentioned, Bruce more so than Alfred. She wasn't sure why it was such a sore subject, and chose not to push for the answer. She would research Bruce more thoroughly while on monitor duty. She was eager to see Bruce again soon, and hoped that he would have enough free time to set up the next meeting soon. Diana was happy to know that she'd found a new friend in man's world, and a man no less! Her mother would certainly not approve, especially based off of the reputation that Bruce appeared to have according to Batman, John, and Kal. She was convinced that there was more to her friend than he'd allowed the world around him to see, and she wanted to discover all she could. Diana floated through the warm air in no specific direction towards the city just enjoying the sun as it warmed her skin. She'd actually forgotten about one of her man goals until his voice startled her through the comm link. "Batman to Wonder Woman."

She opened the channel and responded. "Wonder Woman here. Go ahead."

"You're still in my city." Batman stated. How he knew that, Diana couldn't figure out. "I'm heading to the Watchtower. Meet me above to Clock Tower in the center of the city. Batman out." And the channel was quickly closed before Diana could respond. She was still in a good mood in spite of Batman's abrupt crudeness.

Within ten minutes, Diana was on top of the Clock Tower and waiting until she heard the sound of the Batwing's thrusters above her. Knowing that he was waiting, she simply flew up and sat in the passenger seat next to Batman. "What has you in such a good mood?" He asked as he noticed the smile plastered on her face.

"I just had a wonderful meal this morning." She answered simply.

"Care to elaborate?" Batman asked while trying to keep his face neutral.

"Bruce Wayne has a wonderful butler who also serves as an exceptional cook." Diana explained. "I think you are vastly mistaken about the man too. He's been nothing but polite and kind with me."

"Consider yourself lucky Princess." Batman retorted. "He'll show his true colors eventually."

"Actually Batman, I think he just did show his true colors." Diana responded. "I think this persona that he shows the world is an act, and the real man is who I've begun getting to know."

Batman wasn't sure how to respond to that. Had he been too transparent and lost the playboy fop persona in front of her so completely that she saw it as just a cover? He wasn't sure what to do at that point. Batman wanted to scold himself, but knew at the moment that he couldn't , lest he give away everything about who he was. There would be a time for that later. He merely responded with a grunt before adding. "Can't say I didn't warn you Princess."

The flight up to the Watchtower was calm and Diana was still beaming with a smile upon arrival. Superman noticed the bright smile from her as she exited the jet before Batman and his jaw almost dropped to the floor. He'd never expect someone to be in such a good mood when having to fly up with the Batman. The man was simply infuriating in such confined space, but she had been extremely happy it seemed. Batman of course maintained his normal demeanor as he stalked passed the Man of Steel without saying a word. Superman followed Batman to what would soon become the transporter room. He couldn't let it go and had to ask. "So why is Diana in such a good mood?"

"Drop it Kent." Batman responded.

"Well it's obvious that it wasn't because of you." Clark responded.

Batman clenched his hands into fists from under his cape as he fought to keep his temper in check. It in fact had been because of him that Diana was in such a good mood. If he would have responded immediately, he'd have yelled that back in Kent's face. Batman instead took a deep meditative breath to restore his emotions for the moment. "She went to the manor and met Alfred." He stated matter of factly. "Diana seems to think Wayne is a front and is hiding a good man underneath."

Superman scowled at hearing this. "Don't you dare do anything to hurt Diana, Bruce. If you do you'll be answering to me."

Batman had heard enough at this point. "You have a lot of nerve threatening me Boy Scout." Batman seethed through clenched teeth. "Don't you have something better to do than keeping me from working here?"

Superman was stunned slightly at Batman's lack of fear. Did he really know him so well to believe that he wouldn't pummel Batman into a mere stain on the ground? "Just be careful Bruce." Superman stated as he tried to bring the tension down a bit. 'Diana doesn't deserve to be hurt." He turned and walked out of the room leaving Batman with that last statement serving as food for thought.

~~ 3 hours later ~~

Batman worked feverishly on the teleporters with J'onn until they were nearly completed. By this time the next day, Batman would use his guinea pig to test it out. And as soon as possible he would construct the counterpart within the Batcave. He'd already had all of the pieces gathered, and would be supplying it with enough power so that the entire east side of Gotham would be blocked from teleportation without the bypass code that only Batman would have. He'd also designed the teleporter to delete coordinates before they could be saved if another code was entered. This code he would share with all members of the League as they would all want a safe guard from someone following them unless they for some reason wanted their secret identity revealed. Certain settings were already programmed to follow a rule established to delete the record as soon as one entered any point in Gotham City or where the Fortress of Solitude was located. That little nugget would certainly get under Superman's skin when he found out about it. Batman smirked at the thought of Kent trying to figure out how he'd known the location of his Fortress.

~~ Monitor Womb ~~

Diana had been on duty for three hours. There were some natural disasters which required assistance, but Green Lantern had been able to resolve all the issues without any need for backup. Aside from that, it was turning out to be a fairly quiet day on monitor duty. Finally she decided it was quiet enough that she could start her research. She began by simply googling Bruce's name. She soon discovered that Green Lantern was at least correct in that Bruce was incredibly rich. She discovered that he'd taken ownership of his family's company when he'd returned from traveling abroad. He initially used his money on his college education, where he attended Harvard. She used the clearances Batman had set up to hack into the college records and found that Bruce hadn't majored in anything and was an average student for the most part. Scrolling through more news stories, Bruce had never been married. He also seemed to play up to the image her teammates described. According to reports, he went to numerous parties and functions across the globe and usually had a different woman on his arm each time. She read through those stories carefully, and wondered why a man would put himself out as such a chauvinistic male whore, when he appeared to be quite different in the way he acted around her. She would have to question that the next time she had an opportunity to speak with him.

She tired quickly of the tabloid stories and began digging further into Bruce's past. It was there that she'd discovered his parents hadn't just died, but were actually killed. Diana went back to hacking, and soon had pulled up the case files of Thomas and Martha Wayne's murders. Her eyes welled up with tears as she saw a picture of a young Bruce kneeling in an alley holding onto a broken pearl necklace. She found that a common thief by the name of Joe Chill had murdered his parents right in front of him. The look of horror on the young man's face caused a sharp pain of grief in her heart for him. She found that Bruce had continued with the charitable works his parents had started, and actually they had blossomed under Bruce's watch. He was truly a better man than he'd allowed himself to be portrayed as. Diana researched Bruce's parents too and discovered that they were some of the most well respected citizens of Gotham City. The photos of their funeral showed quite a few people in attendance, but again Diana's heart went out to one individual in particular. She again stumbled across a young man's face that appeared to be lost and hollow as he stared forward in the distance. A middle aged man had his hands placed on young Bruce's shoulder. Diana quickly realized that it was Alfred supporting the young Bruce.

Diana jumped as she heard the doors sliding open to the Monitor Womb and quickly closed the search windows while simultaneously wiping the tears from her eyes. Batman entered the Monitor Womb and headed towards another computer terminal. He needed to transfer a program so that it could be saved to a USB thumb drive and uploaded to the teleportation access panel. Upon walking through the room, he'd noticed the extra glossiness of Diana's eyes. She'd clearly been upset and bordering on tears falling from something before he'd entered and he had a good idea what it was. A long time ago he'd set up security on the Watchtower to alert him of any searches on Bruce Wayne, his assets, or his family. "Everything alright Princess?" He asked as he waited for the program to transfer.

Diana took in a quick breath as she tried to compose herself. "Yes. I just discovered some sad information about Bruce is all." She responded. "I was taking your warning about him seriously and decided to research Bruce to come up with my own conclusions about the man."

"Understandable." Batman responded as he tried to maintain his monotone emotionless voice. "He had a rough childhood. That's why I warned you about him. He has some issues."

"Yes he did have a rough childhood." She responded. "But I still believe he is a good person. I'm honored that he wishes to consider me as a friend, and I intend to pursue that friendship. I like him."

Batman snorted quietly. She certainly couldn't be deterred easily he thought to himself. He was actually happy that she wanted to have Bruce as a friend. Despite Clark's worries, Batman had no intention of hurting Diana in any way. He would certainly have to check Wayne's schedule and call Diana to set up their next meeting. He could learn so much about her while at the same time preparing her for the real world around her. It was a win-win situation according to him, and he wanted to see it through. In the end the team would be stronger when Diana was aware of how man's world functioned, and he'd have that much more information about the powerful Amazon. It was an opportunity that he simply couldn't and wouldn't pass up.


	10. Chapter 10: Busy Schedules

It had been three weeks since Diana and Bruce had gotten together for breakfast. When Batman returned to the cave he had his time consumed by a rather strange uptick in violence on the streets. It was something that troubled him due to the fact that most of the known heavy hitters were locked up. Of course Joker was still on the loose, but the type of activity taking place didn't follow along his typical M.O. The only similarity was that there was no pattern to follow, but even then if it were the Joker that was behind it, he'd have made it known that he was the puppeteer pulling the strings. Joker seemed to live to let Batman know that he was keeping his so called version of balance in Gotham. Whenever Batman attempted to clean up the city, Joker was always there waiting to bring it back towards chaos.

This particular crime spree had taken much of Batman's time away from anything else. He wasn't even afforded sleep the last few nights. Patrol was forced to extend until sunrise and Wayne Enterprises then came calling swiftly. The lawsuit was coming to a close, but Bruce had to keep his guard up. He couldn't allow anything to slip through the cracks when the end was so close. Batman had been able to supply documentation which indicted the "victims" of circumstance as knowingly being involved in an attempt to push a project with faulty equipment that if used would be potentially deadly. There would have been government sanctions to follow swiftly if not for the few men that were bought off. While the tracks were covered well to protect Luthor from being discovered as the money behind the tactics, there was still enough evidence to turn the tide of the case in Bruce's favor.

Bruce was starting to run low on energy to the point that coffee was beginning to not have an effect on him. He had actually almost dozed off during the League staff meeting. If it weren't for the lenses in his cowl, he'd have certainly been caught by everyone. Diana had been the only one to notice it, and she didn't seem too pleased. She pulled Batman aside promptly after the meeting scolding him. She had a point in that Batman got the schedule changed so that meetings weren't as frequent, and felt he wasn't giving them the proper amount of attention. She threatened to point it out if he dozed off again. He merely stood there in front of her silently until she lost her patience with him, turning and promptly storming off. Batman simply didn't have the energy to argue about how busy he'd become. He certainly wasn't going to ask for any help either. He thrived in his city based on fear, and if Meta humans like Diana were to begin patrolling in his city, then he would lose some of that power that he held over the criminal element. Why would they remain fearful when he was just a normal human? No, he had to handle the city himself. Eventually he would discover the reasoning behind the increased violence and promptly put a stop to it.

Finally tonight seemed to be slowing down, and for the first time in weeks it gave him an opportunity to think things over. He did feel as though he needed to reach out to Diana though as Bruce. He was sure that she had been anxiously awaiting a response from Bruce, and three weeks was a lot to ask of someone to wait without a word. Perched on top of Wayne tower, he decided he should do something about that to rectify the situation. He entered the tower with his special access from the roof that led him into Bruce Wayne's office. He opened up the computer on his gauntlet and performed a search for Diana's position. She was currently not located on the Watchtower. Good, he thought to himself. He could leave a quick message apologizing for taking so long and let her know that he'd not forgotten about her. If she actually knew the truth, then she'd already know that thinking about her took up more of his time than he would actually like to admit. Batman picked up the phone on Bruce's desk and dialed the secure line into Diana's quarters that she'd given to Bruce. Just as he expected, it went to voicemail. Bruce cleared his throat just as the tone beeped indicating it was recording his message. "Hello Diana, its Bruce." He started. He actually felt a little nervous for some reason, but he pushed himself on. "I know it's been a while since we've had a chance to talk, and I wanted to apologize and let you know that I haven't forgotten about getting together again. I still would like to as soon as possible. Things have been a little hectic at Wayne Industries, but I wanted to make sure you didn't think I'd forgotten about you. I'm hopeful that business here will slow down enough to allow some free time so that we can set something up. I'll call you again to set up a date hopefully soon. Catch you later Diana."

Batman hung up the phone and made his way back outside the tower. Hopefully Diana would be okay with that message and still be interested in meeting up with Wayne. He was about to call it a night when the police scanner chimed in his ear, indicating that a theft had been reported at the Gotham Museum. He groaned as he'd actually hoped to get a chance to head home early for some much needed rest. As Batman traveled towards the museum, he happened by chance to notice some movement in the night sky heading in the opposite direction. He promptly changed direction with a second grapple and landed on a nearby rooftop before jumping again to give chase. It wasn't long before Batman had caught up to the same rooftop as the mysterious figure. He threw a bola forward towards his target as he continued running forward. He watched as the bola was deftly dodged by a graceful movement. Undeterred he then lunged forward towards the assailant only to be met in the chin with a spinning back kick. It was a strong enough blow to make him stumble backwards for a moment. Batman looked around for the criminal, but they seemed to have disappeared. He knew they were still on the same rooftop though just based on the lack of noises he'd heard. Batman engaged his infrared vision and began looking around for human heat signatures. Before he spotted anyone, the same bola he'd thrown earlier came flying back at him and quickly wrapped around his body. He was able to maintain staying on his feet for a moment before the criminal he'd been chasing landed before him and used their finger against his forehead, pushing him just enough to end that balance causing him to fall backwards. "Hello handsome." He heard.

"Selina." Batman responded seething through his teeth. He worked on his escape at the same time with a batarang that had been in his hand the whole time. "What are you doing here in Gotham?"

Catwoman lowered herself straddling over his body for a moment as she leaned in very close to his face. She licked across his lips before answering. "I just came to see you again Batman. I missed having you chasing after me is all." She rubbed her hands over his chest plate as she caressed his cheek against her own.

Batman sneered in response. "What did you steal from the museum Selina?"

Catwoman placed a hand over her chest in mock exasperation. "Why would you think such a thing Batman?"

"Because I know you." He responded as he struggled underneath her to free himself from the bola. Selina slapped him across the face before climbing to her feet.

"A girl's got to eat Batman." She said as she walked towards the ledge of the roof. "It's nothing really. No one will ever miss it. See you soon handsome."

She jumped off the roof, and within moments she was gone. Batman squirmed and twisted until he managed to free his hand that held the batarang. He used it to cut through the bola lines eventually allowing him to escape. Batman began looking for any clues that would tell him where Selena had gone off to. Since she had moved out of Gotham a year ago, she'd be much harder to locate. So much for turning in early he thought to himself.

Batman spent the better part of an hour tracking before the trail went cold. He then made his way over to the museum where he discovered that Catwoman had stolen a Bastet Amulet. It was one of a set of five from Egypt. Each item was in the shape of a cat, and that was all the information he needed to confirm that it was indeed Catwoman that had been the thief. Batman worked with Commissioner Gordon until all evidence had been retrieved from the crime scene. He had hoped that some evidence would result in clues as to where Catwoman was hiding at the moment. She wouldn't be in town too long, especially if she wanted to keep the amulet. He would have to act quickly in order to catch her.

~~ Watchtower ~~

Diana was walking out of the Javelin Bay alongside Superman and Flash. They had just returned from a grueling five day mission off world. There was a civil war on a planet which had escalated to the point that one side went away from their world in search of more "volunteers" to join their cause. The three League members had originally went to the planet as an attempt to attain peace, but they quickly discovered the outside resources joining along on one side, while the others maintained as best they could without reaching out to outer worlds with their plan. Superman kept the recruits occupied while Diana and Flash searched for anything that would give the outsiders their free will back. From there, they discovered a hidden signal which affected all the outsiders that had joined into the fray. The signal led them to a mind wipe device which they discovered was used to turn the outsiders into mindless army drones that only followed orders. Once the device was destroyed and the signal ceased, everyone that had been affected began realizing where they were, and immediately started leaving to go back where they were collected from.

The three heroes all split up as they reached the wing where everyone's personal quarters were located. Superman was going to file the mission report quickly before heading home to Metropolis for the night. Flash went to his quarters to get cleaned up before grabbing himself an iced mocha and heading to the Monitor Womb for his scheduled monitor duty.

Diana made her way to her quarters. She thought about joining Flash for an iced mocha, but as she had monitor duty in the morning, she thought it best to skip out on the caffeine in order to have less trouble falling into a nice slumber. She instead was going to opt for a shower before heading to her bed. When she entered her personal quarters, she sat down at the edge of her bed where she unfastened and slid off her boots one at a time. When she went to stand up and make her way to her lavoratory she happened to glace at the wall controls where a red light was blinking at her. She'd never seen that before, and walked over to inspect the panel. Diana turned on the room lights so that she could better view and inspect the light. Above the red flashing bulb was a written inscription that said "Message". Diana pressed the button just below the light, and an automated voice came to life that informed her she had a new message from her personal line. She'd never had a message before. Her first thought was could it be Bruce. She hadn't heard a word from him in almost three weeks, and had begun to think he'd moved on and shown his playboy ways once again instead of letting the man she'd found inside him to be able to flourish. She pressed the button again, and listened to the message as Bruce's voice played. "Hello Diana, it's Bruce. I know it's been a while since we've had a chance to talk, and I wanted to apologize and let you know that I haven't forgotten about getting together again. I still would like to as soon as possible. Things have been a little hectic at Wayne Industries, but I wanted to make sure you didn't think I'd forgotten about you. . I'm hopeful that business here will slow down enough to allow some free time so that we can set something up. I'll call you again to set up a date hopefully soon. Catch you later Diana."

The automated voice indicated that she had missed Bruce's call by almost an hour. However at hearing the message, she began to smile. Bruce had remained the charming man that she had met at the charity. She once again eagerly wanted to find some time to get together with Bruce. Perhaps she could call him after her monitor duty ended the following afternoon. Bruce had given her the numbers to the manor as well as his personal line at Wayne Enterprises. She pondered whether or not to call him as she walked to her lavoratory where she turned on the water and removed her uniform before stepping into the steamy hot shower. Hearing the message from Bruce had lifted her spirits slightly and actually took her mind off the mission she'd previously been on. She enjoyed having something to take her mind off of the League for a change, and Bruce was providing that outlet for her. When she had first arrived on man's world, she would have scolded herself for even feeling this way about a man. Her mother and sisters on Themyscria certainly wouldn't approve if they were to know of this change in their princess. But things had begun to change for Diana. She could see with her own eyes that while men were far from peaceful, there were some that proved wrong the Amazon belief of all men being crude and coldhearted monsters that were only fit for breeding. Diana finished her shower and dried herself off while deep in thought about her teachings compared to what she had experienced herself. Eventually she waved it off as something that required further investigation, and she made her way over to her alter where she prayed and paid homage to her patron gods and goddesses before moving over and climbing into her bed for some earned rest.

~~ Wayne Enterprises, 2:30PM ~~

Bruce walked back into his office with a huge weight lifted off of his shoulders. The lawsuit had just been dropped as evidence provided by Batman proved there was no fault by the organization, but instead pointed towards the men that had begun the accusations. Now they were going up on charges for the illegal activity they had performed. Even in a crooked system that Gotham City still was run by, these few men wouldn't be able to escape the law. Only Luthor would manage to get away unscathed, but he was now front and center in Batman's mind. A trip to Metropolis would help Batman aid in some reconnaissance on Luthor. Bruce wondered to himself if he should just head over to that city or let Superman in on his intentions to further investigate one of Metropolis' own richest inhabitants. What the Boy Scout didn't know wouldn't hurt him. It wouldn't be like the last time where Batman had infiltrated the scum and "interrogated" them in his quest to locate the Joker. He just needed to dig up some dirt on Luthor, and that could be done discreetly. Superman didn't need to know. He would only want to join in and possibly ruin any stealth that Batman would have.

Bruce plopped down in his desk chair as his mind raced about how he needed to go about this investigation. He couldn't use the teleporters yet as he'd not had time in the last three weeks to use Flash as a guinea pig to test it out. At least during the last few weeks, Bruce had been able to construct the second platform within the cave. He did test the tracking portion out using an inanimate object, which was successfully transported to the cave and there was no reading for tracing where the object had been sent. Next was a live test subject, where Flash would come in to play. Bruce was brought out of his reverie by his personal desk phone ringing. The caller ID didn't reveal the number to be from inside the Wayne Tower, so his curiosity was piqued as to who it could be. Normally personal calls went through his secretary. He picked up the phone and answered. "Bruce Wayne."

"Hello Bruce." The angelic voice stated. "It's Diana."

Bruce inadvertently smiled. "Diana!" He cheerily said. "So nice to hear from you. I hope you got my message."

"Yes I did Bruce." Diana responded. "Thank you for reaching out to me. That's actually why I called. I wanted to let you know that I'm still looking forward to getting together myself."

"Well Diana, I have some good news about that." Bruce said as he spun his chair around so that he could look out the window of his office. "We just had a law suit against the company dropped, and that should free up some time for me in the next couple of days."

"That's good to hear." Diana returned. "Have you had any chance to think about what we can do?"

"Actually I have Diana." Bruce answered. "I was thinking that you might enjoy a trip through the Gotham museum. It's got quite a bit of the city's history, and if I'm not mistaken there is also a Greek exhibit showing there this month. How does lunch and the museum sound on Tuesday?"

"It would have to be a late lunch." Diana responded. "Would 2:00 work for you Bruce?"

"I think I can work around that." Bruce answered. "Meet me at the base of Wayne Tower, and we can walk from there. The weather is supposed to be nice so a walk would be rather enjoyable I'd think."

"Sounds good Bruce." Diana said. "I'll see you on Tuesday then."

"Tuesday it is. Good Bye Diana." Bruce waited until Diana responded and ended the call before he hung up his phone. He leaned forward in his chair and steepled his fingers in front of his chin as he looked out over his city. He was looking forward to meeting with Diana on the Tuesday of the following week. It gave him the time he needed to tie up some loose ends, and with a little luck, perhaps apprehend the Joker as well. He sat there looking out the windows until after 3:00 when he decided that he would return to the Manor. All the major work had been resolved from the fallout of the lawsuit and it was Friday. Most of the bigger decision makers were already making their way to a golf club or heading home by this point. It had been a good day for Wayne Enterprises after all.

~~ Batcave ~~

When Bruce arrived home, he quickly made his way to the Batcave entrance where he opened the secret entrance behind the grandfather clock and was instantly able to hear the sounds of Tim training as he descended the stairs. Unlike the last time, he also could hear another male grunting and fighting. When Bruce reached the training room, he watched as Tim was squaring off against Dick. In just three weeks Tim had surpassed what Alfred was able to teach. Bruce could already see how much Tim had improved his balance and footwork from when he'd begun training. Alfred was a strict instructor when it came to footwork and balance, which was part of the reason why Bruce wanted Tim to start off training there. Alfred had learned a long time ago about how being forced into a bad position could become fatal. He'd seen enough from injuries Bruce endured to know that a balanced man was much more able to defend himself and avoid unnecessary injury. Bruce had the scars to prove it as well if Tim ever needed a reminder.

Tim was handling himself quite well against Dick. Being smaller and not as strong, Tim was forced to rely on his basic training with Alfred and made to avoid taking on any unnecessary strikes from his new mentor. He was however running out of energy whereas Dick appeared as though he'd just been standing there the whole time. He was barely even sweating. When Dick noticed that Bruce was watching however, he became a little more aggressive in his approach, and began taking Tim down with regularity. Although Bruce could see it growing, Tim never let his frustration get the better of him. He also wasn't making the same mistake again. Bruce calculated that training with Dick each day, if there were no setbacks Tim would be ready to begin training with him after perhaps two to three more months. Then Tim would be challenged on his patience. Bruce wouldn't let Tim out in the field until he was sure that Tim would fare well on his own. But then Bruce wouldn't be letting Tim out to patrol without supervision for at least three or four years. He would not take any chances with this young man. He could already see the potential in this boy. He had a rare mind that almost literally absorbed everything as if it were a sponge. Bruce wanted to spend a good bit of time making sure Tim was deeply involved in forensics. Dick was well versed in detective work and forensics, but he still had things that he could learn or improve on. However Dick had become his own man and Bruce respected that. It actually made Bruce quite proud of Dick. In some ways Dick was actually a better man than Bruce. He was able to heal from tragedy much more effectively and that Bruce envied just a little bit.

Bruce left the boys to their training and dressed in the Batsuit before making his way over to the Batwing. He performed a preflight diagnostic and within minutes was jettisoning his way into space where he would be traveling to the Watchtower. He had one task in mind before he would be returning to Gotham for patrol and to search for the Joker.

~~ Teleporter room ~~

Diana and Superman watched as J'onn and Batman were putting in the final touches to the teleporters. "Batman to Flash." He called into the comm link.

"Yo Bats." Flash responded. "What's up?"

"I need your help with something." Batman answered. "What is your current location?"

"I'm in downtown Central City." Flash responded. "I can be anywhere in a couple minutes. Where do you want to meet up?"

"The Watchtower." Batman answered. "Maintain your position."

"I'll need a Javelin to pick me up then if you need….." Flash trailed off for a moment as he pondered where the conversation was going. "Why do I need to hold my…." Flash noticed the flashing of blinding lights around him for a moment before the lights dimmed to where he could see again. He was no longer in Central City but on the Watchtower before he ended his question "….position?"

"Teleporters are online." Batman stated before turning on his heel and exiting the Teleporter room.

"Is he crazy?" Flash asked loudly to anyone that would listen. "What the hell just happened?"

"Batman teleported you to the Watchtower." J'onn explained before checking some diagnostics. "I agree, the teleporters are now operational for use going forward. All readouts came back as normal."

"I could have been turned into a pile of mush!" Flash yelled. "Was he trying to kill me or something?"

"Batman doesn't kill." Superman stated before exiting the room.

"Still I should have known he was about to do that. He really freaked me out with that thing." Flash said looking for someone to take his side.

"Batman calculates everything fifty times over before he moves forward. Do you think he'd really try that out if he wasn't sure you'd be alright?" Diana asked.

"Maybe." Flash responded. "I get the feeling that he doesn't like me very much at all."

"Batman doesn't like anyone all that much. Even himself." J'onn responded before he continued checking all of the readouts.

Diana and Flash looked at each other after hearing J'onn's opinion before they both exited. Flash almost needed a new costume and Diana wanted to head to the training area for a good work out. She made her way down and attempted to enter training room three, but it was locked. That surprised her as most of the League members only utilized the first two training rooms. Diana input her override codes to unlock the doors, and when they opened she found out why it had been locked. Batman was inside training against a steady list of villains.


	11. Chapter 11: Lets See the Sights

Diana watched as Batman went through the gamut of villains he'd programmed into his simulation. He was doing rather well, but Diana could see that Batman's moves weren't as crisp and precise as he normally always was. After a few minutes, Batman was becoming increasingly sloppy in his technique and was moving much more slowly. Diana tried to take note of if there were any changes in his movements. Perhaps he was working on a new fighting technique, but she quickly threw that possibility out after Batman was knocked onto his backside. That was surprising in of itself, but she was flabbergasted by his next move as three of the simulated villains surrounded him and he called out to the computer to end the simulation.

Batman had looked up after ending the session to notice that Diana was there watching him. He quickly stood to his feet and walked over to the control panel where he began entering data about the villains he'd faced. He hoped that Diana would think that he was simply testing out some things with the simulations, but she knew better. He tried ignoring her, but she was making it impossible as she walked straight up to him. He tried focusing on the control panel ahead of him, but it was no use. Not even a batglare would be able to save him from Diana. "Is everything alright Batman?" She asked point blankly towards him.

"Fine." Was his response.

"It didn't look fine from my perspective." She retorted. "Are you injured? If so you need to rest. You are no good to the League or your city in your current state."

"I said I'm fine." He fired back as he looked up into Diana's blue eyes. "Once Joker is back in Arkham I can rest and be back to normal."

Diana was about to reply again, but Batman quickly walked passed her and out the door. For a moment she thought about following after him, but she already knew that would only be a lost cause. Even still she knew that she was right, and she would see to it that Batman at least was checked out in the medical bay before he left the Watchtower. Batman walked swiftly towards the transporter room. He knew that Diana was the most persistent person he'd ever come across, and if she wanted to track him down he would only have a few moments to attempt escaping her. He couldn't head to the Javelin bay where the Batwing was waiting because just as she'd done last time she pursued him, she would attempt to force her ways onto him. The transporter room was his only hope of escaping without being stopped. Batman only slowed his pace so that he could make certain that she continued following him towards the transporters.

As Diana walked through the hallways, she finally started gaining ground on Batman. She knew that she would have to be quick in order to catch him before the Batwing was able to take off. She quickened her pace and quickly began to gain ground on Batman only to notice him walking passed the Javelin Bay entrance. Where is he going she wondered? Then his likely destination came to her, the transporters. He'd successfully tested it using Flash, and having done that he was most likely going to use it for a quick escape to evade her. Damn mortal man. What was he thinking trying to hide away what had obviously happened to hinder him? She was only looking out for his and the League's benefit. Sure enough she saw him enter the transporter room. She took flight in hopes of quickly catching him.

Batman caught a glimpse of the fast approaching Amazon as he entered the doorway to the transporter room. He'd only have a few precious seconds to get away before she caught him. Fortunately for him, he'd encoded the programming into his Batsuit's computer metrics system, and could prompt a code for transport remotely. This made it so that he could step onto the teleportation pad and only had to press the _engage_ button on the teleporter terminal in order to activate it. Batman pressed the necessary button and stepped onto the pad. He turned around to face the doorway, and just as Diana came in, she was able to see Batman's body consumed in a flash of light before it disappeared from her view. How was he able to escape so quickly? You had to take care of where the selection would be to avoid being placed somewhere potentially life threatening. Knowing Batman however, he most likely had some standard settings saved where he could select one of them to escape quickly. Diana groaned in frustration from the way that stubborn man could get under her skin. She made a quick telepathic link to speak with J'onn. She would track him down and force him to come back to the Medical Bay for observation. _J'onn, how do you trace the last location input into the transporter?_

_There should be a read out scan on the main screen._J'onn answered. _Select the recall icon from the main screen and it will pull up a log of transportations taken. Why do you ask?_

_Batman is injured and is evading me in order to avoid seeking medical treatment._She answered. _I'm going to bring him back onto the Watchtower to have him checked out._

_But according to the Monitor Womb readouts, Batman is still onboard._J'onn responded.

_How? I just saw him transport away. Where is he located?_She asked.

_The Javelin Bay prepping for departure._ J'onn answered.

Diana wasted no time communicating with J'onn. She took flight immediately and soared to the Javelin Bay, but was only there quickly enough to receive a salute from the cockpit of the Batwing as he jettisoned forward towards the dock where he would be gone in seconds. Two times he had been able to evade her, and she knew she had lost him at this point. Batman would make it next to impossible to find him. A man who made a career out of living in the shadows would not be found unless he wanted to be, and it didn't matter if the hunter were a meta human or not. Diana clenched her fists and stormed back out into the hallways vowing to herself that she would not let this mere mortal evade her again while cursing about males in a mumbled voice.

Batman smirked as he flew out of the Watchtower. His plan of escape allowed him to evade Diana's pursuit. He had no time to deal with being looked over when he knew that he wasn't injured in the least. He knew that his body required some rest, but rest would have to wait until the Joker was back behind bars. Besides, like it or not Nightwing and Batgirl were back on the streets patrolling every few nights, and it would only be a matter of time before the clown slipped up.

~~ Patrol Monday night ~~

Batman crouched down on top of one of his favorite gargoyles. It was raining profusely and drops of water were dripping off the tip of the nose of his cowl. His suit was built in to keep his body temperature regulated for instances such as a rain filled and cold night. Nightwing and Batgirl had tracked down a couple of Joker's old goons, and they were following the thugs in hopes of finding Joker while Batman focused on all the other tasks around him. The weekend had been filled with crimes where he was actually glad to have Nightwing and Batgirl helping with patrol. Even with their help though, sleep was next to impossible to get. Batman had to make the rare appearance during daylight the previous two mornings as he'd stopped a total of twenty-three attempted muggings, seven rapes, two kidnappings, three store robberies, and a bank robbery as well. All three vigilantes were exhausted come Sunday night, and Batman had taken that night on by himself to allow the other two some rest. The rain seemed to stem the amount of criminal activity on this night though, and Batman was actually thankful of that. He was getting ready to travel over to the clock tower to meet up with Batgirl and Nightwing when his attention was grabbed by the sound of laughter down below. Batman looked down on a man stumbling along the sidewalk and into an alley laughing hysterically. He watched as the man eventually fell to his knees in a fit of laughter, and that was when he knew that this man had been poisoned by Joker venom.

Batman swung down from the rooftop and landed in front of the man. He wanted answers and he was going to get them. With one hand Batman latched onto the man's throat and picked him up before slamming him into a wall. The man only laughed harder at this happening. Batman pulled out a syringe and readied to stick it into the man's neck. "Where's the Joker?" Batman demanded. "You've only got a few minutes left before the venom kills you Ricky. Tell me or I'll leave you like this."

Ricky raised his hand pointing over to a building across the street while he tried and failed to say "over there". Batman glanced where Ricky had pointed over to, and once satisfied, he injected the serum into Ricky's neck. A few small laughs later and Ricky was unconscious. Batman dropped his unconscious informant and made his way over across the street. Sure enough there was a door to the back of an old apartment building that had been forcibly opened. Batman engaged his infrared vision to view for any signs of life inside the building before he entered slowly. There was a heat signature at the other end of the building and Batman crept up ever so slowly to that area. The heat signature was in a single room behind what was likely a standard guest room door. He pulled out a fiber optic cable and slid it under the door for a better view. When the screen on his gauntlet lit up, Batman could see that inside the room was indeed the Joker. He was sitting at a desk with his back facing the door. Batman then angled the camera so that he could inspect the door before he burst through it. Once he was satisfied that there was no booby trap, he stood and put away the fiber optic cable. He readied himself for a moment and then raised a leg before thrusting it forward into the room door.

Batman's kick caused the door to shatter open. This noise obviously got the Joker's attention. "What the….how the hell did you find me Bats?" Joker asked in surprise. He tried to stand from his chair, but Batman was too fast, and quickly kicked Joker's legs out from under him.

"You shouldn't poison members of your crew so close to your hideout Joker." Batman practically seethed as he locked Joker's hands into plasticuffs.

"Crew?" Joker asked as Batman dragged him up to his feet. "You already arrested my crew weeks ago. How did you find me? Somehow come up with a sixth sense Batsy?"

"That's enough talk from you." Batman stated as he connected with a sharp elbow to Joker that knocked the man unconscious. Batman then dragged the Joker along and deposited him in front of the Gotham police headquarters. He flew up to the top of the building and waited for Commissioner Gordon. It took some time but the Commissioner did eventually make it up to the rooftop.

"Thank you Batman." Jim said before he saw his masked friend. "I don't know how you were able to find him, but I'm glad you did before he was able to cause any real trouble."

"He was sloppy this time Jim." Batman explained. "More so than normal. I'm not so sure that he wasn't set up by someone. Even so with someone like the Joker, I couldn't let him remain free."

"That's certainly true." Jim replied. "Any ideas on who the rat is that gave the Joker up?"

"None yet, but I'm looking into it." Batman answered. "Whoever it is, if they are brave enough to cross someone like the Joker, then we need to know more about them and their agenda."

"Fair enough." Jim responded. "So, first Wonder Woman, and now Nightwing and Batgirl have seemed to return to our rooftops. It looks like my guess on your expansion on your team was accurate."

"Wonder Woman was only temporary Jim." Batman quickly retorted. "Batgirl and Nightwing too. I needed them to help track down the Joker. Wonder Woman seems to be curious about me, and I imagine she sought you out to see what you knew about me. Once that curiosity fades, she'll not be around here again."

Gordon began to pace a little bit as Batman watched. "Your right Batman. She is curious about you, and did ask me to describe what I knew of you. I think she is a genuinely good person Batman, and good…." He realized that Batman had slipped away. "…for you." He finished.

~~ Batcave, 3:35AM ~~

All members of the Batclan had returned to the cave. Each one was relieved that the Joker was back inside the walls of Arkham Asylum once again. The weather had helped slow things down enough to allow everyone to end patrol early, and Batman would get some much needed rest. Thirteen days with only an occasional ten minute power nap here or there simply wasn't enough. Bruce even skipped a shower after patrol in order to head towards the master bedroom a few minutes earlier. As soon as Bruce's head hit the pillow, his eyes were shut. Not even the nightmare that would inevitably haunt him awake could interfere with his overwhelming need for sleep.

Dick and Barbara were still in the cave when Alfred was making his way down the stairs. "Has Master Bruce already retired for the evening?" He asked.

"Yeah." Dick answered. "Joker's in custody now so hopefully things will settle back down for a while."

"Thank heavens." Alfred responded with a relieved sigh. "I was beginning to believe I'd have to lace Master Bruce's coffee with sedatives to get the poor lad to sleep. He's never neglected his rest like this before."

"Things have been crazy for some reason lately Alfred." Barbara explained. "Even the low time scum has been nonstop lately. Even with our help Bruce had to stay out later and later it seemed. Thankfully the weather helped give us some time to catch up on rest."

"Indeed Miss Barbara." Alfred responded. "I can only hope that tonight brings about a change to a more normal evening going forward."

Bruce woke up quickly; covered in sweat and trying to catch his breath. His eyes darted back and forth for a few moments before he started to settle in from the nightmare that came to him in an almost nightly fashion. After catching his breath, Bruce looked around the sun filled bedroom and realized that it was late morning. Alfred hadn't come in to wake him so that must have meant that his surrogate father had taken the liberties of canceling any morning meetings at Wayne Enterprises. Bruce climbed out of bed and stretched to loosen his tight muscles. He headed to the restroom and turned on the water to the shower before slipping out of his boxer briefs and tank top. Checking to see if the water was the right temperature, Bruce finally stepped in and let the hot water pelt against his skin. He could almost feel the tension washing away from his body as the water trickled down. Bruce opened his eyes and looked over towards a clock that hung on a wall in the restroom, and that was when he realized that it wasn't morning at all, but early afternoon. He would have to hurry in order to meet Diana on time. He quickly washed and rinsed himself off before turning off the water and stepping out of the shower. Bruce quickly shaved before drying himself off and exiting back into the bedroom. Alfred had apparently come up to wake him as he found that his bed was already made and a set of clothes were laid out for him. Bruce quickly slipped on the dark grey slacks and blue polo shirt. He gave himself a quick once over before slipping on his shoes and almost running out of the room and down the stairs. "Alfred!" Bruce hollered.

Alfred was at the door waiting for Bruce. "At the door Master Bruce." He answered. "I've taken the liberty of preparing the car for every need."

"Thank you Alfred." Bruce responded. "Let's go."

~~ Outside Wayne Tower, 1:53PM ~~

Diana performed a test run herself on the teleporter. With Batman and J'onn putting the equipment together she had little doubt that it wouldn't work properly. She teleported to a nearby alley where it was confirmed that no one was around, making it safe to teleport there without causing harm to anyone. Diana felt slightly queasy from the effects of being teleported, but all in all it was tolerable enough and much quicker. The League would be able to drastically cut down the response time for any trouble that needed their intervention in the future.

Diana had spent a while looking for something appropriate to wear to such an occasion. She'd researched settings such as other casual get togethers before on the web, and reached out to Shayera a time or two, but the Thanagarian didn't see much point in such settings. She wasn't really interested unless it was a jeans and tee shirt type of outing if there was no battle to join in. She originally had thought to wear just her normal Amazon chiton, but after researching some _women's fashion_magazines, she opted instead for a simple yellow sun dress and sandals that strapped up just below her calves. She pulled her long raven hair up into a French twist and decided that she was ready to meet Bruce.

Diana stood in front of the Wayne Enterprises tower waiting for her companion to join her just as he'd requested. She only had to wait a couple of minutes until a car pulled up and stopped at the curb in front of her. The elderly man that Diana had met at Bruce's home stepped out from the driver seat of the 1949 Mercury Monarch and turned to her before he opened the back door. "Good afternoon Miss Diana. It is a pleasure to see you again."

Diana couldn't see through the tinted windows of the car, but she knew from seeing the man before her that Bruce was inside. "Hello Alfred." She replied to the kind gentleman. "It is good to see you again too."

Alfred pulled the back door open and Bruce stepped out into view. "Hello Diana. I'm sorry that I'm late." Bruce said as he held out a single white rose for her.

Diana stepped up to the flower and placed her hands around Bruce's as she gently pulled the rose along with his hand up to her nose to breathe in the scent. "Actually Bruce, you're on time." Diana offered. "I came a little early."

"Well I still should apologize for making you wait." Bruce responded with a smile. "Are you ready to see the sights of the city with me?"

Diana nodded to confirm that she was, and Bruce gestured to her the direction that would take them to the museum. They both walked side by side detailing all the events that had kept each of them tied up until this point in time. Diana and Bruce both laughed and enjoyed listening to the others stories as they made their way to the museum. She was happy that her appearance seemed to go as unnoticed as Wonder Woman by the other people that were around them. She was enjoying this moment just acting like a normal person instead of a super hero. In fact, Bruce was gaining more attention than she was. She didn't mind that in the least as she knew already that she was accompanying the media's proclaimed _Prince of Gotham_. Bruce had been labeled as royalty without actually being royalty at all. When it became apparent that he wasn't going to be able to avoid the unwanted attention, they quickened their pace until they entered the museum. Bruce had called in some favors in case something like this was to occur where he would have private access to the entire museum for the next two hours. The doors were closed behind Bruce and Diana as soon as they got inside.

Diana was pleasantly surprised that Bruce had taken such precautions to provide them with a little privacy. From what she had read up on being deemed as a celebrity, privacy was something that didn't come easily. She figured that Bruce had become well versed in what it took to gain a little bit of privacy. Bruce led her through the different exhibits and when Diana wasn't reading up on the available information, Bruce was filling her in on what he knew. Ignorant playboy fop certainly wasn't what Bruce seemed to be towards Diana. She was really beginning to consider that it was a mask he wore in public. She wondered why he would do such a thing, and when they had a moment alone she'd decided that she would ask him. For the time being, she went back to enjoying all of the artifacts and other pieces of history laid out within the museum. There was even a small section in the history of Gotham that pointed to the Waynes and how the family had lived in this city for multiple generations. Bruce became a little sullen in this area, but he didn't ask Diana to move on and instead waited patiently until she moved on to another area. She noticed the change in his demeanor, obviously chalking it up to his having experienced his parents' deaths. The change wasn't obvious, but she was able to notice Bruce's body stiffen up slightly and the smile disappeared.

Diana enjoyed learning about everything that the museum had to offer, and Bruce's demeanor returned to seemingly enjoying the moment once again, and that made her smile more as she wanted her new friend to enjoy himself as well. She knew from this moment on that speaking about his parents would have to be handled delicately if the subject were in need of being brought up. That wouldn't be too difficult a task as she wanted to learn more about the man himself rather, and there was certainly enough there to keep her satisfied for a time until they became closer friends. Perhaps in that time she would discover the best way to approach him about such a traumatic time in his life.

The two hours Bruce had obtained went by quickly, and soon they were informed that the museum needed to open back up to the public. This would allow the paparazzi to enter as well. Bruce pulled a cell phone from his pocket and called Alfred, who in turn pulled the Mercury Monarch around the back of the museum. Bruce and Diana slipped out and got into the back of the car without drawing attention to themselves, and Alfred was quick to pull away. Diana watched as Alfred drove the car through the city, and became curious when they were actually leaving it behind them. "Where are we going now Bruce?" She asked.

"It's a little surprise that Alfred and I thought of while we were planning for today." Bruce answered. "Don't worry Diana, I think that you'll enjoy this part as much, if not more than the museum. We're almost there."

Diana sat back and looked out the window at the vegetation that they were driving passed. It was a beautiful part of the world with all the trees and lush green grass. Eventually she noticed a large building coming up. In just a couple of minutes, Alfred was pulling into the small parking lot in front of the building where Alfred parked the car and climbed out. He opened the back door and Bruce slid out first before turning around and offering his hand to Diana. She accepted as she then climbed out of the car herself. Alfred then went to the back of the car and opened the trunk. He pulled out a basket and handed it to Bruce.

Bruce grabbed Diana by her hand and led her up to the building. There was a placard in the ground next to the sidewalk that led to the front doors of the building which Diana took a moment to read as they walked passed it. The sign read "The Thomas and Martha Wayne Home for the Children". Diana turned to look Bruce in the eyes with a look of questioning towards him. Bruce simply smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "I thought you would like to have a little early dinner with some of Gotham's orphans and at risk children."

Diana smiled and wrapped her hands around the crook of Bruce's available arm. "You certainly are a surprising man Mr. Wayne." She said. "It sounds like a lovely idea."


	12. Chapter 12: Watchtower Fodder

Diana stood back for a few moments to take in the scene happening before her. Bruce Wayne was surrounded by all the boys and girls from the Thomas and Martha Wayne Home for the Children and was peppered with questions by them all. She was entertained watching Bruce struggling to answer all of the questions being asked. She actually chuckled a little watching this man that had seemingly captivated all of the young children from this house. They all acted as though they knew this man before them quite well. She wondered if that was actually the case. She knew that Bruce Wayne was a major contributor to most charitable areas around Gotham, and he spearheaded the Martha Wayne Foundation that had been started by his mother years ago. One of the caregivers noticed Diana watching Bruce and approached her. "You must be special." She said to Diana.

Diana turned to look at the caregiver. "What makes you say that?" She asked.

"Well Mr. Wayne has never brought any of his other dates here before. It's usually just him when he comes here." The caregiver explained as she too began to watch Bruce interacting with the children. "They love it when he comes to visit."

Diana returned her focus to Bruce and the children again. "It appears that they do enjoy Bruce being here. How often does he visit?"

"Usually once a month." The caregiver answered. "The children all dream to grow up and be the next Bruce Wayne. Seeing a billionaire orphan makes them all believe that they can one day be that too."

Diana looked at Bruce a little more closely. This was apparently another layer that Bruce for some reason kept hidden away from the profile he'd created as a celebrity. Sure everyone knew how much he spent on charities, but how many people actually knew just how much of his own personal time he spent being an integral part of it as well? Judging from all the information there was available out there to suggest about him, probably only a select few Diana deduced.

Once the children began to settle down, Bruce signaled for Diana to join him amongst the children. She walked over and greeted the children as Bruce offered introductions. After a few minutes of being peppered with questions herself, one of the caregivers informed the children that it was time to head outside to play. Bruce and Diana followed them all out to the back of the building. Bruce spotted a picnic table off to the side of the backyard area and walked over to it. He opened the basket that he'd been carrying to whole time and set out plates, silverware, and some covered dishes that Alfred had apparently prepared that morning. There was a pasta salad along with some soft buttery croissant rolls. In another dish was some strawberries and cool whip mixed with whipped cream cheese and some chocolate chip cookies. It all looked absolutely mouth watering, and Diana quickly took a sample of each item while Bruce was putting the food on both of their plates. Diana closed her eyes and took in all the flavors from the food, she almost moaned in pleasure from the assault on her taste buds. "This is all delicious Bruce." Diana said as she dipped another strawberry into the whipped goodness. "Thank you for suggesting this, and I will have to remember to thank Alfred for the wonderful food."

"I'm glad that you enjoyed it." Bruce responded. "I'm sure Alfred will enjoy hearing your compliments."

Diana looked around quickly and noticed that they were all alone at this point. It might be the only opportunity she had to be alone with him. "Bruce, is it alright if I asked you something?" She asked with a hopeful look.

"I suppose so." He answered cautiously.

"I'm sure you're aware that I've researched you quite a bit." Diana started. "I have to say that I find it hard to believe that you are the type of person that the media has portrayed you to be. You've been attentive towards only me at times, and one of the care providers told me that you haven't brought any other dates with you when you come to visit here."

Bruce smiled. "I'm sorry Diana, but I didn't hear a question in there."

"Which one is your mask?" She asked.

Bruce was shocked by her question, but he tried to just shrug it off. 'What do you mean Diana?" He asked.

"I'd like to know." Diana said. "Is how you're being around me the real you or is it the man that I've read about? I'd like to know if you are putting up an act just because you are trying to impress me. I know that in the very least you are more intelligent than you allow yourself to be portrayed."

Bruce wasn't sure how to answer the question. In some ways he was both men and more, but in other ways he had two masks and didn't know who he really was inside anymore. He only knew that he had actually enjoyed Diana's company. He had so few true friends in his life, and having Diana as one of them was in itself a blessing for him. He soon realized that the silence was beginning to make things awkward. "Diana, it's hard for me to explain." He started to answer as he rubbed the back of his neck trying to think of a way to explain this. "I don't know what all you've found out about me or my life, but I can't say in total honesty that there are some facets to each that are true about me."

Diana wasn't satisfied with that answer. "Please don't hide things from me Bruce. As a friend you shouldn't try to keep things from me."

"Ok Diana let me try to explain." Bruce was thinking on his feet at the moment seeking for an acceptable answer. "Out there in the public eye, everyone wants to have a piece of Bruce Wayne. Just because I'm a rich kid, they've thrown me in as a sort of celebrity, and that means all of the media and gossip mongers are looking for anything at all that they can exploit to bring a celebrity figure down. In my experience, it's so hard to differentiate who you can trust or not in that world. So I decided to give them their stories rather than have them digging into things such as the past with my parents." Bruce took a deep breath as he watched her expression telling him to continue. "I know it sounds strange but I just really want to be a normal person, and if I were that in public, then someone would either fabricate stories based on pure fiction or take anything that they can and flip it around. By being who I am out in public, it gives those types the materials they want, and I don't mind giving that to them if in return I can have any moments of peace."

Diana took in his explanation for a moment. "It doesn't sound that strange actually." Diana said. "Being a super hero as they call us, we've all also been stuck in stories that are untrue. I don't understand why people will make up a story from nothing. It seems quite disrespectful and dishonest."

Bruce smirked. "So then I take it that its possible I don't have any competition from Superman as all the papers say?"

"Kal and I are the best of friends, and there is nothing to worry about with him." Diana responded playfully as she noticed the smirk. "You may have to worry about Flash though."

Bruce laughed at that response. "I'll take my chances then. After all, you're here with me instead of with him."

Bruce and Diana finished their small meals and filled the basket back up with the remaining food and dishes they'd used. They continued with the playful banter all the way back to Bruce's car. Bruce handed Alfred the basket, and he stowed it away in the trunk again as Bruce was saying his goodbyes to Diana before she called in to be teleported back to the Watchtower. Diana gave Bruce a hug and thanked him for spending time with her. They promised each other that they would do something like this again in the near future before Diana disappeared in a bright white light.

Alfred had a grin on his face that told Bruce he would likely regret the discussion that Alfred obviously had in mind for the drive back to the manner. There was little he could do at this point to deter the old man once he was set on his course of action. Alfred would get his questions answered one way or another. Even as an adult, Alfred had his means to get Bruce to do as requested.

Diana arrived on the Watchtower platform to the sight of Shayera standing at the teleporter panel. Needless to say Shayera was no longer interested in what she was originally doing as soon as she saw the look on her Amazon friend's face. Diana walked out of the transporter room, but Shayera was hot on her tail. By the time Diana had reached her personal quarters and opened her door, Shayera was within arm's reach of her. "So, had a better time than you expected with a man Princess?" She tried to pry.

"It was a very pleasant experience." Diana responded as she made her way over to her alter. "I think that Bruce and I are becoming very good friends."

"Friends?" Shayera questioned. "The look on your face says otherwise Di."

"I'm not sure that I follow you." Diana responded.

"Let's just say that if you are feeling the way your body language and that silly grin on your face indicates, then your Amazon heritage would definitely be concerned." Shayera explained. "I'm proud of you princess. You should broaden your horizons to more than just what has been taught by and to your people for thousands of years. So, care to share the details of your date with the billionaire bachelor of Gotham?"

Diana went into details of how her date went with Bruce. She described all of the information that she had learned at the museum, and then went into details about the surprise stop at the boys and girls home established in Bruce's parents' names. Shayera remained quiet as she listened intently to the details. This Bruce Wayne had certainly been smooth in his approach of Diana. She'd spoken with John about things that he had said to Diana in front of her regarding his thoughts on the man that had approached and danced with the Amazon princess. The way John described Bruce Wayne would have made her turn away from him as soon as he approached. She would certainly never have danced with that type of man, but if Diana was correct in her description then perhaps there was more to the man than John actually knew about. After all Diana had personal experience and John hadn't even met the man until the charity event. Personal experience always trumped hearsay, and that caused her to lean her opinion of the situation towards Diana for the time being.

Diana was struggling to hide the smile that was firmly planted on her face. While Shayera could tell from the stories that she'd had fun, it was her demeanor that read more into just how much fun she'd had. Shayera was glad for her as Diana was still somewhat new to the world. She having only been an active part aside from Themyscria, it was good to know that Diana was gaining a new friend. Perhaps she would travel to the Earth more often than just for missions as well. It was rather confining in the Watchtower if you stayed there too long unless you were J'onn it seemed. Diana lived there and spent a great deal of time there too. While Shayera lived there in her own quarters, she still had many outlets to get her away if she needed to. She hoped that Diana's new acquaintance would provide that same type of outlet.

~~ Building outside of Gotham ~~

"Are you ready to strike and take care of the detective?" Ra's al Ghul asked. "I have made all the preparations to keep any outsiders from interfering, and I am growing weary from having to wait."

"My investigation is complete." The large man answered. "I am now waiting until the Batman is isolated from his apprentices. My plan should begin in the very near future, and when I am finished with him, you won't have to worry about Batman again."

"Do what you must to incapacitate him." Ra's stated. "Only kill him if you must. I have other plans for the detective once I've made my move in this world."

"As long as your payments come through, I will follow through with your request." The large man conceded. "Although I do wonder how you intend to keep this Justice League from interrupting me or you once the Bat is dealt with."

"The detective has done the lion's share of that work already." Ra's explained. "My investigation into the Justice League has shown that the detective keeps them at arm's length, especially in his city. That should give you all the time you need if you are as skilled as your reputation describes. As for myself, without the detective, I am not concerned about the League. They're interference without the detective to aid in any investigation will be miniscule and slow. By the time they are even aware of my involvement; my plans will be too far along to be stopped."

"Don't you think you underestimate the power of the Justice League?" The large man asked. "Even if the Batman is formidable, the rest of the League is made up of nothing but Meta's."

"No one in the Justice League has the mental capacity to present a challenge to me." Ra's answered. "Only the detective would be able to get in my way. Now, go and take care of him."

~~ Watchtower training room, two weeks later ~~

Batman watched as Superman and Wonder Woman were sparring. It was truly a spectacle to see. These two Meta's in an actual fight could potentially leave the world in utter destruction before either would be victorious over the other. Superman had the edge in overall strength, but his fighting technique relied solely on his powers whereas Wonder Woman had extensive training to give her an advantage in utilizing technique. Batman paid close attention to her form. He'd noticed ever since defeating her when they sparred that she must have worked hard on perfecting her fighting positions as she was much more balanced and wasn't charging forward to provide any vulnerability. She was still though relying on what her fellow Amazons had trained her with. "Mix it up Diana." Batman instructed. "You're being too predictable in your movements."

Clark attempted to respond in between attacks from Diana. "She…seems…..to be…..mixing…..things….up to me."

"That's because you don't know of any fighting styles aside from brute force Clark." Batman fired back with one of his patented bat glares. "She's not as powerful as you and needs to rely on her technique more."

"Perhaps you'll provide me a rematch instead of trying to critique me Batman." Diana said as she and Clark separated and went for their bottles of water setting on some benches alongside one of the training room walls. "I believe the results will be more in my favor this time."

Batman smirked at her. "If you want to be beaten by a _mere mortal man_ again, I can find the time princess."

"That sounds like a good idea Diana." Clark said as he gathered his things. "I need to get going anyways. There are deadlines that I have to meet otherwise Perry will have my head." Clark leaned in towards Diana as he walked passed her and spoke in a very low voice so that only she could hear him. "I think you need to teach Batman some humility. Don't go easy on him Diana."

She smiled after hearing Superman's encouraging words, and turned to watch until he had exited the training room. "So Batman, what are the rules of engagement this time? No powers or toys or are we going to be permitted to use our full capabilities?"

Batman thought about it for a moment. "I think you've had enough of relying on your brute force with Kent." He suggested. "I'm more interested in making you utilize your training."

Diana smiled vindictively as she approached him before getting into a fighting stance. "Very well Batman, no powers it is. Ready when you are."

Batman removed his belt and began to circle Diana slowly. She was being much more patient this time around. Perhaps it was because she had been sparring with Superman though and she was merely conserving energy. He continued to circle looking for any opening or mistake from her, but she was doing well to maintain with her training. After circling completely around her for the third time, he finally stepped in and feinted with a roundhouse kick. Diana jumped back while maintaining her fighting stance. At this point Batman knew that he was in for a challenge. He came in once again and this time raised his leg momentarily as though he were preparing for a snap kick before slamming his foot back down to the ground and pivoting around and lowering for a spinning heel kick aimed at her feet.

Diana was able to pull one foot back from the impact, but not her second. Her foot came high off the ground from the force of Batman's kick and just as it was returning, she was surprised by the speed of a mortal man as he was quickly throwing punches aimed at her face. She was able to block the initial barrage, but Batman again changed his course of action and latched onto one of her arms as he aimed for a submission hold. She moved as quickly as she could to avoid being put in such a maneuver and threw an elbow from her free arm into his abdomen. The hit was hard enough to knock him back a step, but he didn't release her arm. Instead he pulled her over with him until they were so close together that punches and kicks would be pointless. Instead he battled with her for control as they each grabbed hold of the other and attempted to maneuver themselves into a better position of control.

Diana threw some well places elbows at Batman's midsection and head whenever the opportunity presented itself. She was making good contact and was definitely hurting him even though he was doing well not to show it. She began to believe that she was gaining the upper hand until he suddenly stepped forward into her before immediately pulling back and taking her over his shoulder slamming her to the ground. He instantly pounced on her using his bodyweight to keep her from escaping out from underneath him. They were both breathing heavily from the constant battle for control. He noticed the look of determination on her face as she fought to slow her breathing to normal. As he looked upon her, he temporarily became enchanted by this beautiful woman pinned underneath him. This distraction was all that Diana needed to use her legs and hips in order to flip their positions.

Batman was irate at himself for allowing himself to become distracted. His will was his strongest asset and had just failed him. Now he was pinned underneath Diana and had little room to maneuver in order to free himself. She had a tight grip on his wrists and was in a full controlled mounted position. Diana smiled at him. "You're defeated." She said triumphantly. "Yield."

Batman raised his head off the mats so that his nose was almost brushing against hers. "Not…..yet." He said before she blinked and he immediately thrust his hips upwards violently which created separation from her body to his. It was just enough to swing one of his legs up and he was barely able to hook it in front of her which gave him the necessary leverage to force her off of him completely. He then locked her head between his legs and squeezed. "Now you're defeated. Yield or pass out."

Diana struggled as she attempted to remove herself from Batman's hold, but without using her powers she couldn't find a way to get free. Either way she would be defeated so she tapped on his leg to single concession to him. He released the hold on her head and she sat up trying to catch her breath. He was standing in front of her seemingly unaffected at all from the tussle that had just occurred. How could a mortal man be victorious over an Amazon warrior? She just couldn't put her fingers on the reasoning behind it. This was the second time he had defeated her, and she did not like it one bit. When he offered her his hand she brushed it off violently and stood on her own. "I will figure out how to defeat you without powers." She sneered.

"Eventually, yes." Batman agreed.

Diana was caught off guard from that admission. She was looking at him wide eyed. "What did you just say?"

"There's only so much that I have to use against you, and I will one day grow old." Batman explained. "Eventually you will learn enough or I will become too old to keep up with you. It's inevitable that one day you will be able to defeat me in hand to hand combat."

"That day will come before you've aged too much." Diana stated. "That I promise you."

"If you study other forms of martial arts perhaps so." Batman agreed again. He smirked at her stunned appearance. He enjoyed keeping her on her toes. "You need to expand your knowledge aside from just Amazon training. Then you'll also be able to better protect yourself from taking on so much damage in battle. Like it or not, you're not Superman Diana."

"Perhaps I should expand my knowledge." Diana conceded. "After all, I can better help my people with any knowledge on how to better defend ourselves should the need arise. Do you have any suggestions where to begin?"

"If you're willing to listen and learn, then I could teach you." Batman offered. "But only if you are serious."

Batman turned and walked away from a still stunned Diana. Always keep them guessing he mused to himself.

~~ Monitor Duty ~~

"You're kidding me." Flash stated flabbergasted. "I don't believe it. You're telling me that he was actually nice?"

"Yes." Diana answered. "I was as confused as you are now. Just when I think that he is simply an arrogant mortal that always thinks he's right, he does something like this."

"Maybe he likes you Di." Flash began to tease. "You must have captured the big black bat's heart. Next thing you know, there will be a bouquet of roses waiting for you on your bed."

Diana chuckled at Flash's teasing. "I'm sure that won't happen Flash." She said. "Speaking of, I need to go and get some rest. I have the late night shift of monitor duty."

"Alright Di, I'll see you later." Flash responded as Diana stood up from her chair and walked out to exit the Monitor Womb. She made her way to her personal quarters, and actually caught herself wondering if Batman would actually do something like that. It would send chills through her body to be the recipient of such a gift from the unemotional void that is Batman. She entered her code and closed her eyes for a moment as the door slid open. When she opened her eyes, she could see a long box sitting on her bed, and she gasped at the sight of it. She approached the bed and sat down next to the box, almost afraid to touch it. After a few moments her Amazon character seized control and she reached forward pulling the lid off to reveal a dozen red roses. Had the Batman been reading her thoughts or eavesdropping on her conversation with Flash? She picked up the flowers and a card dropped out of the bouquet. She picked up the card and read the written words.


	13. Chapter 13: Sister City Beckons

"You really shouldn't have." Diana said. "I don't need such a gift."

"I know, but I wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your company Diana." Came the voice at the other end of the line.

"I have to know, how were you able to get the flowers up to the Watchtower and to my quarters without my noticing?" She asked.

"Well Di, a man such as myself isn't without the means to deliver flowers to a beautiful woman. Even if she is living in a space station." The man answered. "So when would you like to get together again?"

"I don't know for sure Bruce." Diana responded. "I did enjoy our last meeting, and would like to go out with you again. My schedule seems to be a little hectic at the moment. Plus, I was offered the opportunity to train with Batman earlier, and I'm considering that option very seriously."

"Why would you need to take up training from the Batman?" Bruce asked. "I thought you had years and years of training already, and he is just a normal man without super powers."

Diana was slightly taken aback from hearing Bruce's perception of Batman. "I can assure you that while Batman is indeed a non powered man, he is still a very skilled warrior." She said. "I hate to admit it, but he has taken me down on multiple occasions while sparring, and one can never learn enough about any topic. If I learn from Batman, I can become a better warrior for myself as well as my people. They would appreciate learning other fighting skills and tactics so that they could at the very least devise a proper way to defend themselves should the need ever arise."

"Fair enough I suppose." Bruce conceded. "Just don't let him take up too much of your free time. I already miss not having you around to talk to as it is."

"Don't worry Bruce." Diana said trying to put any lingering doubts to rest. "I'll find some time to come down and spend with you. I hope you have something as special as the first time to show me."

"I don't know how I could top visiting with the kids Di." Bruce teased. "I'll have to consult with Alfred. Perhaps he has some good ideas. Listen, I have a business call coming up in a couple of minutes so I'm going to have to go. I hope you enjoyed the roses. They're from a special breed."

"I do Bruce, and you have my word that I will call you soon with a possible date for you to plan out. Good night."

"Good night…." Bruce said before disconnecting the line from the Batcave computers. When he was sure the line had cleared he continued in a quiet voice. "…Princess."

Bruce sat back in his chair with his fingers steepled just in front of his face. What was he doing? Being with Diana as Bruce was challenging in of itself, and if she actually did take him up on his offer to train with her, there would certainly be more opportunities for her to discover his secret. Would she be upset if he didn't just come out and tell her? The obvious answer to that question was a resounding yes. She was a beacon of truth, and expected the truth from her allies in the very least. He couldn't give up his identity though, not even to her. It was his last line of defense against his enemies, and while Diana was far from being an enemy, she would become just another avenue of discovery for his enemies with that knowledge. She'd also allowed herself to be captured by the Joker once already. Could the clown find a form of torture that would be cruel and violent enough to make even the Champion of the Amazons talk? Bruce believed that given enough time, Joker would most likely be able to make anyone talk. His devious mind concocted things that no other person on this planet seemed to think of, let alone have the desire to follow through with those thoughts. Bruce would have to make certain that he maintained a distance from Diana so that he could protect his identity. Perhaps in time he would come to trust her enough to allow her knowledge of his secrets like the Batclan. She would be hurt by it, but given enough time, he believed that he could eventually earn her forgiveness.

Bruce could have saved this heartache for Diana if he would just stop seeing Diana as Bruce Wayne, but for some reason he couldn't understand, he just could not force himself to stop contacting her. Why had he delivered her flowers? He made sure to follow through the entire process of Bruce Wayne working connections and favors to get the flowers delivered. He certainly couldn't do it as Batman lest he give himself away. After a couple of days, he'd made the right connections, and the flowers were sent off along with the supplies that were occasionally delivered to the Watchtower. He made sure it was listed in the front of the inventory as a personal item for Wonder Woman. That ensured the package would be delivered to her room first and inspection would be minimal aside from a scan to validate that it wasn't something harmful or contraband. The question was still why did he even do it? He had no answer for that question.

Bruce was lucky that he'd managed to make it back to the Batcave before Diana used her personal line to call him. If it weren't for the teleporter he'd never have made it back to catch her call. Alfred wasn't aware of him heading to the Watchtower this evening, and would have likely had to lie to Diana after realizing that Bruce was nowhere to be found. Bruce sighed and leaned forward as he moved his thoughts to tonight and patrol. He pulled his cowl on and the transformation was back to being the Bat. Batman reached forward to the console and pressed a button opening a communicator line. "Batman to Nightwing."

"Nightwing here." Came the response.

"Where are you and Batgirl patrolling tonight?" Batman asked.

"Actually we're not going to be able to patrol Gotham tonight." Nightwing answered. "Bludhaven seems to be replicating the increase in violence that Gotham saw recently. I guess the Haven doesn't want to take a back seat to her sister city. Babs is going to help me out. Even with her help it's going to take weeks to get things calmed back down. If you're looking for company you could suit the kid up and take him around to show him the ropes."

"He's not ready yet." Batman fired back. "He hasn't even graduated from your training into mine."

"That's fighting Batman, not detective work or finding patterns." Dick argued. "You're better at that stuff than I am. Who else could Tim learn that from that would be better than you?"

"Not until he is finished with your training." Batman responded. "I'm not going to allow another young man to be out there until they're ready for everything."

"Bruce, Tim's not Jason." Dick almost pleaded. "And what happened to Jason isn't your fault."

"I allowed him to become Robin." Batman retorted. "And I won't allow Tim to take on that role until I believe he's ready. I won't risk it. Not again."

"Alright Bruce." Dick conceded. "I'm not going to push you about this now, but Tim will be ready sooner than you think. You need to prepare yourself for him going out too. Look, I'm going to head out for patrol. I'll let you know if anything big comes up. Nightwing out."

Batman sighed as he closed the channel from his end. Alfred appeared out of seemingly thin air beside him. How is it that this man could sneak up on him silently while a Meta like Superman or Wonder Woman couldn't get within a building before Batman would notice their presence? "Master Dick is correct sir." Alfred said as he set a tray carrying coffee down. "Master Tim is progressing along quite well, and it will not be long before he is ready to train with you sir. Are you ready for that?"

"I'll have to be Alfred." Bruce answered. "I've been watching the videos of his training sessions, and I know that he is progressing along quickly. I'm just afraid of him becoming another Jason. I don't want to have to face another failure like that. It's bad enough that I even let him begin training in the first place. What kind of a life am I offering a young bright man like Dick or Jason or Tim?"

"You are preparing them all for the world sir." Alfred answered. "Master Dick has turned into a fine young man that any father would be proud of. Master Jason was following that same path, but his destination was altered by his own anger and lack of discipline with someone as dangerous as the Joker. Master Tim is much more like Dick, except I believe he is better able to absorb material. Almost as though he has a photographic memory."

"I just don't know Alfred." Bruce said as he stood to his feet and began walking towards the Batmobile. "I hope that you're right." He said as he climbed into the car and powered it on as the hatch slid closed.

Alfred watched as the Batmobile motored away. "I hope so as well sir." He said before turning around to pick up the tray.

~~ Two days later ~~

The Justice League had been called in to help out with some rogue defense robots that had malfunctioned during a lightning storm. These robots were the size of a small building, and they could maneuver by sea, land or air. Their design called for self preservation when in combat mode, and the lightning strikes had fried their circuitry to the point of labeling all civilians as combatants and only the self preservation rule was enabled. Any time a person approached one of the robots, they all would attack and destroy any neighboring buildings before moving to another location. There were two hundred of these robots running rampant through and around the small village of Hobo Barik in Afghanistan. The rain from the lightning storm was preventing the innocent victims from escaping as well due to the mudslides that were occurring around the village.

Superman was the first to respond, but due to the number of robots, he requested backup in order to minimize the number of casualties. Wonder Woman, Flash, and Batman had joined as Hawkgirl and Green Lantern were off world on another mission. Batman found a rooftop that would give him optimal viewing of the area while Flash and Wonder Woman joined Superman in taking down the robots. As Batman surveyed the field, he watched over the robots searching for some form of weakness to exploit. The outer casings were hardened to take on maximum damage. These robots had apparently been designed with Meta humans in mind. None of Batman's arsenal would be potent enough to penetrate that, but upon closer inspection, Batman could see where a human could possibly get inside and that would allow him to set off some charges if needed or perhaps cut the wiring to the main power. He waited until the other three Leaguers had gained most of the attention before firing off a grapple and beginning his descent towards the closest robot.

Flash was zipping around the robots at breakneck speed. They were all trying to pin him down for a kill shot, but he'd been able to avoid that for the time being. After some quick maneuvering, Flash was able to get one robot to mistakenly hit another with a missile. The explosion cracked the outer protective casing, but didn't cause enough damage to stop the robot. Meanwhile Diana charged at a group of five that were converging on a home where an innocent family was hiding. She pulled out her lasso and threw it around one of the cannons on a robot before she pulled with all her might. As she pulled, the robot lifted off the ground and flew right into her before she had the chance to react. It landed on top of her and had her arms pinned underneath it alongside her body. Diana struggled to pull her arms free under the weight of this massive machine as it pointed a weapon directly at her face. She managed to get an arm free just as the robot fired, and Diana blocked the blast with her bracer. She pulled her other arm free and grabbed the base of the robot, picking it up into the air where she tossed it into another robot. With those two incapacitated for the moment she could hear another robot approaching from behind her, and she turned to face the machine ready to strike. The robot stopped suddenly and smoke began to emanate from inside. The robot began to shake violently for a moment before Diana noticed a small figure in black climbing out of an opening. She realized that it was Batman just before the robot exploded. Diana protected her face for a moment before her thoughts returned to her teammate. She looked around frantically until she heard a thud just to the left and behind her. Batman's body had impacted a wall from the force of the blast and he fell to the ground in a heap.

More robots were converging on Diana and Batman until Superman flew by picking up the two robots nearest to them. Diana retrieved her lasso, and flew over to another robot. She latched onto it, and flipped it over where it landed on its top. She grabbed hold of a piece on the bottom and ripped it off which gave her access to the inside of it. Flash joined her and swiftly climbed inside. The robot struggled to get flipped back over before it began shaking. Flash darted back out of the robot and away as Diana flew over to Batman and picked up his limp body before she took off for a safer place as the robot was about to explode.

Diana laid Batman down on a rooftop just as the robot exploded. She could feel the quake tremble from where they were. Diana looked down at her teammate and realized that he wasn't breathing. She scrambled through her thoughts as to what she should do for a moment before reaching for her communicator. "J'onn!" She yelled. "Batman was hurt and he isn't breathing."

"Begin chest compressions counting up to thirty at more than one per second Diana." J'onn instructed.

Diana began pumping on Batman's chest as he continued providing her with instructions. "Then tilt his head back and lift his chin. Pinch his nose and cover his mouth with yours and blow until you see his chest rise. Give two breaths at a second per breath and check for signs of breathing on his own before starting over again."

Diana did as instructed and lowered her mouth to Batman's giving two quick breaths. She watched Batman's chest as it rose and fell for each breath before checking his status. He still wasn't breathing. Superman flew over and saw that his teammate was still not breathing as Diana worked on him. The site of this caused some anger to build in the Man of Steel, and he charged at the robots using his heat vision and ice breath to light the robots up and freeze them in place. Flash had heard Diana's call to J'onn over the communicator and was doing his best to get every victim to safety while Superman continued beating and destroying the robots. Diana was on her sixth round of breaths for Batman by this point. She returned to her compressions on his chest as she called out to J'onn again. "He's still not responsive J'onn. Is there anything else I can do?"

"It's been three minutes. I have a defibrillator in the transporter room. Continue your progressions and prepare for transport. We'll need to remove his uniform in order to…"

At the sound of his suit being removed it seemed to cause Batman to respond as he took in a large breath before coughing. Diana's face was right in front of his as she had just finished with two more breaths when Batman became responsive. He coughed a few more times before opening his eyes to see Diana right before him. "How…How long have I…." He tried to get out.

"A few minutes." Diana answered with a smile on her face. "You weren't breathing and I had to give you CPR. I thought we'd lost you for a moment."

Batman tried to sit up, but Diana placed a hand on his chest, and he was unable to hide the pain from his face. He'd at least had a minimum of bruised ribs, if they weren't cracked or broken. At least if they were broken, they hadn't punctured his lungs. He was able to take full breaths, and only the pain from the rib area was hindering him. Begrudgingly he laid back down. "It self-destructed when I tried to cut the power internally. I didn't have enough time to get out." He explained. "Better to just destroy them outright."

Diana looked around for a moment before returning her gaze to her injured teammate. "Superman has most of them defeated and Flash has gotten most of the civilians to safety." She informed him. "Victory is almost ours." Suddenly both of them disappeared in a bright light before reappearing in the Watchtower teleportation room. J'onn was standing by with the defibrillator at the ready until he saw that Batman was awake and breathing on his own.

"You did well Diana." J'onn informed her.

"Thank you J'onn, but I think Batman still requires some medical assistance." She responded. "I'll help Kal and Flash finish up, and be back to check on you soon Batman."

Diana helped Batman to his feet and walked him over to J'onn before she returned to the teleporter and transported back down to the battle. J'onn walked with Batman who was now refusing help to the medical bay where he sat down on one of the medical beds. J'onn looked him over briefly before suggesting x-rays be taken to confirm there were no broken bones. "I already know nothing is broken J'onn." Batman called out. "I'm ready to head back out to the"

"You were nearly killed." J'onn interrupted him. "Diana saved your life just now. I suggest that you allow me to thoroughly examine you for any other possible injuries, and then you are returning home. Kal El, Diana, and Flash can handle the remaining battle."

A batglare was all that J'onn received as a response before Batman stood up and stomped out of the medical bay. J'onn thought to give chase, but he could already sense Batman's anger at being seen in any way as weak or a liability in the field of battle. He knew from glimpses he'd seen of Batman's thoughts that Batman was never one to allow a weakness to be seen, and took great lengths to maintain that aura of being indestructible himself. What J'onn had said to this man had taken that away even though no one else was there to see or hear it, and Batman was making certain that no one else would know of it either. He was likely storming away and wouldn't be heard from again until the status meeting next week.

Batman was so angry that he was seething as he stormed towards the teleporters. He was returning to the cave and going out on patrol tonight. Those criminals that would come out on this night were going to be in a world of trouble if they crossed paths with Batman. He didn't want to be thought of as weak in any sense. So what if he was the only non super powered hero in the League. He'd taken down Wonder Woman in sparring, had Flash running scared of him. Weak should never be something that any of them would think of when it came to him. He wouldn't be returning to them unless they begged right now. As Batman walked into the teleportation room, the pads lit up indicating two arrival requests had been made. Batman granted that request as he had already remotely programmed in his desired destination and he didn't pause at all as Green Lantern and Hawkgirl appeared before him. They stepped off the pads just as Batman pushed the engage button on the console before stepping onto a teleportation pad and disappearing. Hawkgirl and Green Lantern looked at each other in confusion for a moment before shrugging their shoulders and continuing on their way.

Within another hour Superman, Flash, and Wonder Woman had defeated all of the robots and returned to the Watchtower. They all made their way to the medical bay to check on their teammate's status, but only found J'onn there. "Where did that stubborn ass go J'onn?" Superman asked as he rubbed the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb.

"I believe he returned to his home." J'onn answered. "He refused medical treatment. I may have unintentionally insulted him."

Superman enabled his communicator and opened a line. "Superman to Batman, please respond."

"Batman here. What is it?" Came the response.

"Where are you?" Superman asked. "You're supposed to be getting medical clearance before leaving the medical bay."

"Sue me." Batman answered. "I'm patrolling Gotham and I'm fine. Just some bruised ribs. I emailed my report about the encounter already so unless it's an emergency, you shouldn't need me up there."

Superman sighed in defeat. "Very well. We'll see you at the next meeting if not before then."

"Batman out." Was the response before the line was disconnected.

"Why is he so insistent on being stubborn?" Diana asked. "We are supposed to be a team."

Superman didn't have an answer for that, and turned to leave the medical bay. He had to finish his monitor duty shift. Flash just shrugged his shoulders and scurried away towards the cafeteria for some caffeine. J'onn looked at Diana for a moment before he responded to her question. "Batman is the only non powered being on this station. He does not like to be thought of as weak, and I inadvertently indicated him as such."

"We don't think of him as weak." Diana responded. "In fact until this incident, I'd never thought twice about checking on his condition."

"He is different from all of us Diana." J'onn continued. "It has to be difficult for him when everyone else seems to be invulnerable to injury. I believe that is why he is so secretive as he has the power of the unknown in his favor. If he were to lose that, then he would likely consider himself the weak one of the Justice League and retire to only defend Gotham."

~~ Later that night ~~

Batman was doing well on his patrol this night. Crime was low for the evening, and that gave him time to focus on older open cases like seeking out Catwoman. He'd taken the time to dig in to some paperwork as he pieced a paper trail together that had indirectly led him to a likely hideout for the feline burglar. He stood at a nearby building with binoculars in hand as he peered through windows of the building in search of his target. She would be going to jail tonight if he had any say. After a few silent moments, he knew that he'd been spotted watching the building as he heard the indistinct sounds of Selina approaching. Batman stood his ground, allowing his prey to come close enough for capture. Sure enough Catwoman landed behind him gracefully on the building ledge. "So, you've found where I sleep at night. Care for a personal tour Batman?" Selina purred as she approached him seductively.

When she was in arm's reach, she dragged her claws gently across his chest plate. She looked up into the white lenses of the cowl as if she were trying to read his thoughts before she placed a hand on each of his shoulders and leaned forward. "I've missed being this close to you Batman." She flirted. "It's been far too long."

Batman placed his hands on Catwoman's sides. "Where is the Bastet Amulet?" He asked abruptly.

"You're still looking for that?" She asked as she inched closer to his face. "Its in a safe place until the buyer is ready to pick it up. But I'm tired of talking shop Batman. What do you say I take you in for a little nightcap."

Catwoman leaned in ever closer as she got onto her toes until his mouth was mere inches away from hers. She again looked up into the lenses of the cowl for any signs that she should continue or stop. Batman hadn't made a move toward or away from her so she continued forward until her lips brushed against his softly at first. She pulled his bottom lip in her teeth as she was looking to get a response out of him. Batman did finally respond by lowering his head to continue kissing her as the passion between the two of them began to grow steadily. His hands began traveling towards her breasts as she deepened the kiss and moaned when he grabbed hold of them and began to massage them. She finally broke the kiss and grabbed one of his hands to lead him to her room, but he held his ground and didn't budge when she pulled on his arm. "What is it?" She asked.

Batman raised his other hand to the cowl. "Batman here. Go ahead." He spoke.

Catwoman dropped his arm at that point knowing that the bat was back in full force and any intimate actions were now out the window. She sighed in disappointment as he listened to the voice coming from his communicator.

"Batman, we need some backup." Came the voice of a startled Batgirl. "Nightwing's been shot by one of yours."

"What's his condition?" Batman asked.

"Gun shot wound to the leg." Batgirl explained. "He's still losing blood and we're pinned down. It's Deadshot."

"On my way." Batman responded. He looked at a disinterested Catwoman as he pressed a button on his belt. "Return the statue, or I will find you again and have you locked up Selina."

She began to protest, but heard the sound of a jet engine overhead as Batman pulled out his grapple and fired it into the air. Within seconds he was yanked from the rooftop and was retracting the line pulling him up to the Batwing and heading in the direction of Bludhaven.


	14. Chapter 14: Plan to Reach for the World

As soon as Batman entered into the cockpit of the Batwing, he immediately set a course for the tracking beacons of Nightwing and Batgirl. At top speed, he would arrive there within ten minutes. On the flight there, he kept in contact with Batgirl, pumping her for any useful information that would help end the confrontation quickly. The priority was to clear the scene so that they could get Dick out of there as quickly as possible. He'd need some immediate medical attention. Alfred would need to be made aware of the situation so that if necessary, Dr. Leslie Thompkins could be contacted.

Batman slowed the Batwing as he approached his destination. Nightwing was still conscious and Batgirl had resorted to using Nightwing's weapons as she had long ago run out of her own. When the Batwing was slowed enough, Batman engaged the lower ejection panel where he slid out through the bottom of the Batwing. He stayed in a freefall for some time before finally triggering the sensors on his cape and began hang gliding down. When he was close enough, he could see where Nightwing and Batgirl should be according to the tracking devices. He landed on the nearest rooftop and engaged his communicator. "Batgirl. I'm onsite. What's the status?"

"Still the same." Batgirl answered. "I think Deadshot is to the north of us, but there's been so many shots fired from different angles I can't be sure."

"I need to draw Deadshot out." Batman responded. "Once he fires, I'll know where he is specifically from the flash of his muzzle when he fires."

"Got it, just a second." Batgirl replied. She left Dick for a moment to step out into view and entice some gunshots to be fired. Sure enough as soon as she took one step, the gunshots began again. She quickly retreated back to her cover with Nightwing and waited for Batman to intervene.

Batman watched for the muzzle fires that surrounded his beloved Batclan members. It only took seconds to find the muzzle fire that would be from Deadshot's weapon of choice. Batman sized up the number of guns firing, and indeed Batgirl and Nightwing had gotten themselves pinned down. All the gunfire was coming from a higher position than their location. Luckily, Batman was at an even higher position. He quickly decided on a plan of attack before leaping off the roof top and gliding into the fray. He threw some smoke pellets with anesthetic gas at two locations as he glided over top of them unnoticed. There were just three other locations left to clear before he could help Batgirl with Nightwing. As he approached the next location, the gun shots ceased, and then a single shot was fired. It stuck Batman in the chest plate on the right side. The bullet was an armor piercing round. So much for not having a collapsed lung to deal with he thought.

Batman stopped gliding after being hit and plummeted to a roof top. He tumbled and rolled as his form of a landing. As he got back up to his hands and knees, Batman checked the gunshot wound more closely. The Batsuit armor did as much as it could to offer protection, but the bullet did still penetrate it. He was starting to struggle with breathing regularly and some blood began to drip out from his mouth as he slowly got up on his feet. "You weren't supposed to be here tonight Batman." Came the eerily calm voice of Deadshot as he walked forward out of the shadows towards Batman with his wrist gun fixated on his target. "I was just supposed to clip your old protégé's wings off. Looks like I got luck on my side tonight."

"Who are you working for now Lawton?" Batman demanded.

"I'm sure you'd love to know, but my employer enjoys his anonymity." Deadshot panned as he stopped a few feet in front of the now standing tall Batman. "Any last words Batman?"

"Yes." Batman responded. "NOW!"

On his prompting, a disc flew through the air and exploded when it came into contact with Deadshot's wrist. He screamed in pain as the explosion caused some serious damage. Nightwing and Batgirl had gotten free thanks to the distraction of Batman's arrival and had swiftly taken out the other stronghold locations that Batman hadn't gotten to yet. He'd seen the two of them approach from behind Deadshot, and knew that they would be ready to act when it was necessary.

Deadshot started to flee but his feet were tangled together by a bola thrown at him by Batgirl. He struggled to free himself, and had just untied his legs when he looked up to see a fist flying directly at his face. The punch from Batman was strong and instantly knocked Deadshot unconscious. Batman turned to face his two protégés. "Are you two alright?" He asked.

"We need to get Nightwing some help." Batgirl responded. "He's lost a lot of blood already." She then noticed Batman walking weakly towards them. "Oh my lord, you're hit Batman!" She practically yelled.

"I'll be fine." Batman responded as he contacted the Batwing for transport. "Get them tied up and let the police deal with them. I'll take Nightwing to the cave for treatment."

By the time that Batwing arrived, Batgirl had already left Deadshot and his goons restrained and hanging off the edge of the building for the police. Batman was too weak to enter the Batwing using his normal method with his grapple, so he had to have it land on the rooftop to climb in. As soon as they flew off Batgirl took Nightwing's motorcycle and headed off to meet them at the cave. Bruce set up the autopilot to take them and land in the cave. Normally he would manually fly into the cave, but his vision occasionally became blurry as he was fighting to keep enough oxygen in his body on basically one lung. Had they been anywhere other than Gotham or Bludhaven, Batman would have had to resort to using the transporter and taking Nightwing up to the Watchtower. Neither Nightwing nor Batgirl had ever been on the Watchtower, and Batman wanted to keep it that way for now. He didn't believe they were ready yet for the world's stage, and he wanted to protect them from harm as much as possible. While on the flight back, he contacted Alfred to allow him the time to prepare for their medical needs. There was a refrigeration system in the cave that had spare blood from all members of the Batclan available. He'd also requested that Dr. Leslie be contacted due to the both of them being shot. That would allow Alfred to focus on one person instead of having to attempt to handle both injured men at the same time. While Alfred was an amazing medic for the Batclan, he was still only one man. Dick was already floating in and out of consciousness as they approached the cave, and Batman calculated that he would soon be in the same situation as Dick was from his own blood loss and lack of oxygen.

The Batwing performed as the program instructed and blasted in through the waterfall before landing at its designated launch pad. Sure enough as Bruce helped Dick climb out of the Batwing, Alfred was there with Dr. Thompkins waiting and ready to go. Bruce sat Dick down in front of Leslie as she was the more experienced physician. Within moments, Dick's arm had an IV inserted and blood was being pumped back into his body while Leslie worked on the leg wound.

Bruce removed his cape and cowl, letting them fall to the ground as Alfred helped him remove the top portion of his suit. As soon as that was off, Bruce almost collapsed onto the medical table. Alfred hooked up an IV for Bruce to begin receiving blood again as well as an anesthetic to dull the pain. He went to work on analyzing the wound, investigating as to if the bullet was still inside. He was able to locate the object still in Bruce's lung, and pulled out all the tools he'd need to remove the bullet.

As Alfred continued to work on Bruce, Leslie finished patching up Dick's leg. The shot he was hit with went completely through his leg, and just missed the main artery in his thigh. Had that been hit, Dick would already have been dead. Instead, Leslie was able to stop the bleeding and bandage him up. When she was satisfied that Dick was taken care of, she went over to Bruce and helped Alfred deal with the punctured lung.

It was a tense couple of hours for her and Alfred as they worked. Barbara had arrived during that time and helped Dick up to the manor to rest. Leslie had elected to put Bruce completely under as they dealt with his lung. They ran into some minor issues throughout the process, but eventually they were able to work everything out, and Bruce once again had two functioning lungs. He laid on the table resting comfortably. Leslie knew better by this point that Bruce would never listen to advice about allowing his body to heal, so she left him under longer than necessary to at least give his body some time to rest. They were going to let Bruce come out naturally, which would anger him, but both Leslie and Alfred cared for Bruce's wellbeing too much to allow his anger towards them to alter their decisions. Alfred worked with Leslie and Barbara to get Bruce up to the master bedroom where they placed him in his comfortable bed to rest.

~~ Watchtower meeting 3 nights later ~~

Diana was the sixth member to enter the conference room. She was certain that she would be the last member to arrive having been dealing with an issue on monitor duty. There was a potential crisis with a volcano that had been showing signs of an imminent eruption, but for the moment things had settled, and there were no people in the potential path of destruction as evacuations had been completed before she made to leave for the meeting. She took her seat noticing that Batman was the only member absent. It was uncharacteristic of him to be late for the meetings since he'd gotten the League to push them to once every other week. As soon as Diana took her seat, Superman began the meeting without hesitation. He obviously knew that Batman was going to be a no show. The question was why.

As the meeting progressed, Diana took in everyone's demeanor around the table. She was curious as to who could possibly know about Batman's absence. Flash as usual was fidgeting about his seat and occasionally mumbling a complaint about needing some food. He wasn't concerned about anything aside from the meeting ending and getting food. She then glanced over at John and Shayera. As usual they were bickering quietly with one another. Nothing to indicate they were aware of anything out of the ordinary either. J'onn was his typical stoic self. He glanced back over at Diana as he obviously sensed her thoughts as she was glancing around the room. He quickly established a telepathic link with her as he could clearly see the question on her mind. _No one has heard from Batman yet, Diana. Superman believes though that he is recuperating from an injury, and that is his reasoning for missing today's meeting._

_How did Kal come to this conclusion if he hasn't heard from Batman?_ She asked.

_He informed me that he'd been made aware from word being spread around Gotham and Bludhaven that had eventually reached Metropolis._ J'onn explained. _He believes his sources are reputable enough to believe in their accuracy._

_Thank you J'onn._ Diana responded before changing her focus back to the Man of Steel as he was putting the final touches on the meeting. She listened intently to his ending topic.

"Finally before we adjourn the meeting, I'd like to vote on a continuation of attending charitable events." Superman said. "With the success of the recent gala in Gotham City, I think we can lend more than just our strength to help better the world. Just that event provided the entire goal that the police department was hoping to raise in upgrading their buildings and equipment to protect the people. Why not try and help some other causes as well with our presence to help raise the necessary funding for benefits that interest us."

"I think that's a wonderful idea Kal." Diana responded. She had been wanting to offer more help to her fellow sisters of man's world, and if she selected carefully she could add yet another means to doing so for the less fortunate. In her past research of Bruce, she'd seen all the good he had done through charitable works. Albeit he had gone to many charities and supplied some of his fortune for them, the presence of a Justice League member seemingly caused the wealthy to open their wallets a bit more than just a typical charity. Perhaps she could work with some charities to come up with an idea on how she could increase the results even further.

Most of the League members held the same mindset as Diana, and Superman produced a listing of some of the different charitable functions available at the moment. Diana eagerly read through the listing, and it took only moments before she'd found a handful of charities that she was interested in. She returned to her quarters and realized that she had no clue who she should contact to offer her services for these charity functions. Her thoughts again went to her friend Bruce. He was in charge of some charities like the Thomas and Martha Wayne Foundation, and was always seemingly around the others to donate. Surely he had to know the proper contacts. She looked at the clock to check and see if it was an appropriate time of day to make a phone call and saw that it was almost 7:45. She reached for her phone as she sat down on the edge of her bed and dialed his number. She waited as the phone rang four times before someone picked up on the other end. "Wayne residence." Came the voice of someone she'd not recognized. It was a man's voice, but not the voice of Bruce or Alfred. It sounded like a younger man's voice.

"Hello." She started. "This is Diana. Is Bruce available?"

"Actually he is." The young man said. "Just a second." Diana could hear some ruffling in the background as well as some muffled words being said. Some more ruffling noises were heard for another moment until there was nothing but silence.

Diana waited for a few moments before she began to wonder if she'd been disconnected. "Hello?" She called out.

"He…..Hello Diana." Bruce said on the other end. He sounded a little different than at any time during their other phone conversations.

"Hello Bruce." Diana said. "Is this a bad time?"

"Uh no, no Diana." Bruce responded. "How are you doing?"

Diana still wasn't convinced that she hadn't called at a bad time, but since Bruce said otherwise, she decided to continue. "I'm fine Bruce. I was actually calling to ask you some questions about how I could get more involved with some charities that I'm interested in."

There was a moment of silence again before Bruce responded. "Sure, I could help you out." He said. "Why don't you come down to the Manor and we can look through the paperwork for each charity your interested in, and we can find out how you'd like to be involved before we make the necessary contacts."

"That sounds wonderful Bruce, thank you." Diana replied smiling.

"When are you available to come down Di?" Bruce asked.

"Actually Bruce, I'm available right now." She suggested. She knew from the way the phone conversation began that he was most likely busy at the moment, but she wanted to see how far Bruce was willing to go. "If that's alright with you. We have teleporters now thanks to Batman and J'onn, and I could be down in just a couple of minutes if you are available too."

"Right now?" Bruce asked. Diana could hear some more ruffling around in the background. "If you can give me about fifteen minutes Diana, I'll be free by then."

Diana was actually giddy with anticipation. She took a calming breath before responding. "Alright Bruce. I'll see you in fifteen minutes."

Bruce waited for a few moments after Diana had hung up before he turned in his chair to face Dick. "Damn it Dick. I told you not to interfere."

Dick was all smiles as he put on his mask. "Looks like I'm going out on patrol on my own after all." He said. "I'll have to thank this Diana of yours when I get to meet her. Her timing was perfect to prevent your grumpy stubborn ass from going out before you should."

"I am more than ready to take on patrol Dick. Don't interfere like that again." Bruce demanded.

Dick wasn't having any of it. "Don't you think you should get changed?" He responded. "I doubt you want to have Diana see you in a Batsuit so early in the relationship."

Bruce growled and was sneering at his adopted son, but Dick didn't give him the chance to respond as he went for his bike and immediately sped out of the cave. Bruce stood from his chair. He refused to admit it, but three days after taking a gunshot wound to the chest was not nearly enough time for a normal man to have healed, but Batman was no ordinary man. He could just rely more on his gadgets if needs be until he had healed more before returning to his more hands on approach. He looked up at the clock and realized that he was quickly running out of time, and ran over to the locker area as he began stripping off the Batsuit piece by piece. He hadn't given himself the time to put everything away and would have to deal with that later. He climbed into the shower without even adjusting the temperature, and dealt with it as he quickly washed himself before hopping back out of the shower. Within four minutes he had gotten out of the suit, showered, dressed, and was exiting the Batcave with three minutes to spare.

Diana arrived off in the front lawn of Wayne Manor right on time, giving Bruce the fifteen minutes he'd requested. She went up to the main door and just as she was about to knock, the door was opened and Alfred appeared from behind it to greet her. "Good evening Miss Diana." He stated as he placed his hands behind his back. "I hope that you are doing well."

"I am well Alfred, thank you." Diana responded as she entered. "And how are you doing?"

"Splendidly Miss Diana." Alfred answered. "Master Bruce should be here momentarily. If you wouldn't mind waiting in the library Miss, I will go and inform Master Bruce of your arrival."

Diana followed Alfred to the library where he left her to go and fetch the master of the Manor. She didn't become fixated on the books within the room this time as she had the first time she'd visited, but rather the details of the room itself. The furniture all looked comfortable as there were two couches as well as some reclining chairs to choose from. Each couch had a coffee table in front of it, and the chairs had nightstands placed between them. The couches faced towards a fireplace that was not lit at the moment. Above it there was a portrait of a couple. The couple looked happy together. The man looked very much like Bruce, but with different eyes and a mustache. Diana then looked at the woman and there she could spot Bruce's eyes. The portrait had to be of his parents. She recalled reading through some news clips and stories about the deaths of his parents. Looking at the portrait, she wondered if Bruce would have turned out differently had someone been able to save his parents. She was saddened for Bruce as she felt no one deserved to see their loved ones killed in such a manner.

Bruce walked into the doorway of the library and halted as soon as he saw Diana standing in front of the portrait of his parents. He just stood there taking in the scene before him. She was standing there with her hands placed behind her back, staring intently at the portrait. He wondered just what thoughts were going through her mind. He was surprised to find a single tear that escaped and traveled down her cheek. He found that he was captivated by her presence in that room. Without even thinking about it, Bruce's body almost took over his control as he walked up just behind her. She never noticed him as he approached and was startled as she heard him speak. "You would have liked them." He said quietly.

Diana jumped slightly and took a hand to wipe away the tear that had run down her cheek. How had Bruce snuck up on her like that? There was only one other person that had the ability to get so close to her without drawing her attention. When she regained her composure, she responded to him. "Oh, hello Bruce." She said. "From what I've read, your parents did seem to be very good people as man's world's representatives. I can only imagine how much you must miss them."

Bruce looked up over Diana's shoulders towards the portrait. "There's not a day that goes by where I don't wish that they were here today." He said solemnly.

Diana could hear the emotion dripping through Bruce's words. Without even looking at him she could sense his presence behind instantly becoming more sullen. Diana's heart broke for her friend. She wished there was something she could do, and instinctively turned opening her arms before wrapping Bruce up into a hug meant to offer comfort. He stood there in Diana's arms stunned for a moment. Showing such affection with regard to his parents was quite a foreign thought to him. A hug from her was something he'd definitely not expected. He actually found however that it wasn't entirely unwanted at the moment so he slowly and awkwardly placed his arms around her. They stood that way for almost a minute until Alfred came into the room with refreshments. He had started talking to Bruce and Diana before he walked into the room, and immediately regretted the unintended interruption.

Diana instantly let go of Bruce and took a step back. She stood with one arm at her side while the other was across her abdomen holding onto the straight arm just above the elbow. Her cheeks took on a pink hue as she had never before shown any intimate interaction towards a man whatsoever. Bruce turned towards his butler with a smirk on his face as he rubbed the back of his neck. He almost felt like a teenager getting caught in a compromising position by their parents. He wasn't sure why though. Nothing inappropriate had been happening between Diana and himself before Alfred walked in. Perhaps it was because she was in her uniform, which covered about as much skin as a one piece bathing suit.

Bruce and Diana took the drinks that Alfred had provided and sat together on a couch. Along with the drinks, Alfred also pulled together some information about charities that Bruce Wayne had been affiliated with in one form or another. Diana listened intently as Bruce went through any possibilities that might be beneficial for Diana to utilize. Bruce wasn't surprised to find that Diana was settling on mostly women's shelters as her main area of interest. He was able to provide her with a listing of contacts so that she could reach out and set up some time to discuss how she could help out the most.

They were both enjoying the evening. It wasn't every night where Diana could just let loose and relax, but being in the Manor with Bruce, she felt that it was actually a very easy task to accomplish. There was something that was very comforting about being around him. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was something familiar about him. He seemed so confident in himself at all times. The only instance where he'd not seemed confident was when Alfred had walked into the library earlier. She wanted to see if she could figure out what it was about that moment, and decided to change subjects. "So Bruce, how often is it that Alfred walks in while you are _entertaining_?" She asked.

Bruce had a sheepish grin on his face. "Well Diana, I'm not known as a playboy for nothing." Bruce joked before seriously answering her. "It's happened a couple of times, but never here at the Manor before. What about you? Have you had any other times where you've been caught in a compromising position?"

"Until I came to man's world with the pilot Steve Trevor that crashed on Themyscria, I'd never had any contact with a man before." Diana explained. "Mother and my fellow sisters all stayed on the island so there wasn't any need to worry about compromising positions."

Bruce placed both hands behind his head as he leaned back on the couch and smiled. "So, I was your first compromising position. Fascinating." He said.

"It seems I've fallen for your playboy charms Mr. Wayne." Diana smiled and gently nudged him in the stomach with an elbow. Bruce shot up abruptly upon that contact being made before he tried to cover up the pain from his still bruised ribs. "Hera Bruce, I'm sorry. Sometimes I don't know my own strength."

"No Diana, it wasn't you." Bruce said as Diana was trying to check for injuries. He had to think of an acceptable excuse quickly. "I took a bad fall while riding horseback a few days ago. Its just still a little tender there on my ribs is all." He said that just in time as Diana then felt a wrap around his ribcage. Hopefully she wouldn't try to investigate further, or she would find that still healing bullet wound on his chest.

Diana did stop checking on Bruce after hearing his explanation. She looked at him almost longingly. "You ride horses?" She asked. "Where?"

"Around the Manor grounds." He answered. "Why do you ask?"

"I haven't been able to ride since I left Themyscria." She explained.

"That's it then." Bruce said snapping his fingers as he adjusted how he was seated in an attempt to get more comfortable.

Diana looked at him questioningly now. "What is it?" She asked.

"Our next get together." He answered. "Horseback riding followed by a picnic. Plus if we do it here on the Manor grounds, then we wouldn't have to worry about the paparazzi bothering us looking for their next big scoop."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea Bruce." Diana said smiling. "Avoiding the media attention would be nice as well. They seem intent on making you and I out to be more than just friends even though I specifically have told them otherwise."

The grandfather clock began to chime, and Diana looked over to see that it had just passed midnight. "I should probably be going Bruce. It's getting late."

Bruce nodded and stood before leading Diana out to the main door. He opened the door for her and followed her outside before handing her the list of names and contact information they had gathered. "Let me know when you want to make our little horseback trip Diana." He suggested.

"I will Bruce." She responded before leaning forward and kissing him on the cheek. "Thank you for your help tonight and sorry for staying here so late."

"No apologies Princess." Bruce replied. "I had a wonderful evening with you, elbows aside."

Diana chuckled at Bruce's gentle jab, and reached up to enable her communicator, where she requested transport back to the Watchtower. Her smiling face changed to confused however just before she disappeared in the bright lights. When she reappeared aboard the Watchtower, her mind was processing something that he'd just said. He'd called her princess.


	15. Chapter 15: Training All Around

~~ Old apartment around Crime Alley, Gotham ~~

"Yes this line is secure." Came the voice over the phone. "What is the status?"

"Deadshot failed to take out Nightwing as planned." The large man on the phone explained. "He allowed Batman's presence to alter his plans and that resulted in his capture."

"My plans are almost ready to be implemented." The man at the other end of the line stated. "If you cannot take care of the detective in the next five days, I will cancel the contract and assign it to another. I grow tired of waiting."

"Worry not Mr. al Ghul." The large man offered. "This is but a minor setback. I have two actions taking place simultaneously. One will hinder this _Batclan_from interfering, while the other will give me sure victory over Batman. All I need is assurance that the Justice League will not be able to intervene."

"We've already beta tested the device." Ra's stated. "It is ready to create a natural disaster that will more than take up their time."

"Be ready in two nights. Then I will strike." The large man stated.

"We are ready." Ra's said. "Do not disappoint me assassin." Ra's al Ghul disconnected the line at that point, and the large man tossed the burn phone on the hotel room bed. He had to make sure his plans were going to be successful.

~~ Batcave ~~

It had been two weeks since Diana had been to the Manor asking for help in making contact with various charitable organizations. Bruce sat off to the side of the training area deep in thought about the increasing amount of contact he'd had with Diana. While they hadn't been able to get together for the horseback riding plans as of yet, Bruce Wayne had run into Diana at two separate charity functions. She stayed busy learning the ins and outs of what it was to be involved with the workings of a charity event. She did however always set aside enough time to share at least one dance with Bruce. During the dance she was eager to share all that she'd learned, and he had always been willing to listen to her.

There was one thing that troubled Bruce about Diana though. Through the last couple of weeks she seemed to be more interested in dealing with Batman than she had at any point in the past. He'd had to put her off for training because of his healing from the gunshot wound, and that refusal to train with her after offering to beforehand had seemed to be the cause of her almost showing a suspicious inclination about Batman. Bruce had to distance his alter ego from the Princess as much as possible. He couldn't risk her finding out about his secret identity and had the feeling that she was beginning to put the pieces together.

Bruce then focused his thoughts on the young man training before him with Dick. Tim had shown an incredible amount of dedication to his training, and he was now quite the handful for Dick. Bruce knew that he would have to start training the young man himself now. There was no escaping the fact that the boy had earned it. While Tim had yet to defeat Dick in hand to hand combat, he was now taking Dick down from time to time. The best of three falls sessions were now going the full three rounds with regularity. Dick didn't have much more aside from acrobatics that he could teach Tim. He would need to learn more detective skills and patrol routes. Dick was right that there was no one more qualified to teach Tim about forensics and searching through crime scenes for evidence than Bruce. He had years of perfecting his craft to show the young man.

Bruce was watching the for the last fall of the best out of three more closely. Tim and Dick had been squaring off for almost half an hour already, and they had split in a takedown a piece. Both of them were obviously fatigued at this point, and Bruce was watching to see if Tim would keep to his training or become sloppy from exhaustion. As Dick came in with a violent shot, Tim countered by pulling out his Escrima sticks, and using them for some increased leverage, he locked one of Dick's arms into a very uncomfortable hold. Tim wasn't able to hold on for long though as his strength and energy had already been pushed to his limits. Dick was eventually able to power his way out of the hold, but the damage had been done. He was unable to use his left arm very much anymore. Instead of trying to he resorted to some leg based attacks against the young student. Tim was doing well in blocking the attacks until Dick jumped flipping over him and kicked Tim in the face before he landed. That strike was enough to knock the young man off his feet, and Dick pounced on him, pinning him to the ground with a fist raised and ready to strike. "Point for Dick." Bruce called. "That's the match."

Dick stood up and attempted to help Tim as well, but his attempt was swatted away by the frustrated young man. This was the first instance where Tim seemed to show any form of discouragement. Bruce having seen this approached the young man and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You did well today." He encouraged. "But don't let your anger at losing get the better of you."

Tim looked up defiantly at first to Bruce's face until he saw the soft smile there. He blew out a long breath to ease the disappointment he was feeling. "Sorry Bruce." He apologized. "I'll work on keeping my emotions in check more. I thought I had him this time is all."

"You may not have beaten him, but you have improved." Bruce said trying to offer comfort where he could. "In fact, I think you are ready to begin your training with me starting tomorrow."

Tim perked up at hearing those words. "Really!?" He asked.

Bruce nodded in response. "For now though, hit the showers and then get to your homework." He said. "If your school work falters, I won't permit you to train or when the time comes, patrol with me."

Tim smiled and ran off towards the showers without delay. Dick walked up beside Bruce while working on his hurting arm. "Seems like Tim is beginning to grow on you." He surmised. "If I didn't know any better, I'd start to believe you're beginning to actually look forward to taking Tim out on patrol sooner rather than later."

Bruce didn't respond, only glared at Dick for a moment before he grabbed Dick's wrist with one hand and placed the other firmly above Dick's shoulder. He gave a strong yank, and a loud pop echoed through the cave as Dick's shoulder popped back into its socket. Dick grunted trying to control the pain he felt. Fortunately it was short lived, and the resulting move gave him functionality of his arm once again. He rotated it around, checking for any limitations and finding none. "Thanks." He said.

"Back to patrolling Bludhaven with Barbara tonight?" Bruce asked while walking away towards the computers.

"Yeah." Dick answered. "Twilighting between the Haven and Gotham is fun and all, but things are still pretty crazy there. If I don't focus on her again soon, the Haven will be as bad as it was when I first moved there, if not worse."

"Understood." Bruce said. "I can handle Gotham just fine on my own. Even though it's been too quiet here lately, and I know that's never a good thing."

"Any thoughts on what's cooking up?" Dick asked. He agreed Gotham had been dormant for too long with all the top echelon of villains remaining locked up at Arkham.

"I have a couple of leads to check on." Bruce responded as he sat in front of his computer and began typing. "Some of my informants told me that they had seen some outsiders around the city lately. The way they described these outsiders makes me point toward them being from the League of Shadows, and where the League goes, Ra's al Ghul is sure to follow."

Dick leaned up against a table and blew out a frustrated puff of air. "Great." He moaned. "All we need now is that loony eco-terrorist around here with his next plot to change the world. Let me know when you confirm your findings. The Haven might have to wait if it is Ra's al Ghul."

"No." Bruce said. "Take care of your city. I can handle Ra's. And if not, you can bet it is a world altering plan he has, which means the Justice League can be pulled in if necessary."

"Alright Bruce." Dick conceded. "Just call me if you need me. I'll see you for Tim's next training session."

Dick began walking out towards the cave entrance with the intention of grabbing some food that Alfred would definitely have waiting upstairs before he had to make his leave so he could get to Bludhaven before sunset. Bruce stayed behind looking through his files on the League of Shadows and Ra's al Ghul for any ties to the latest bits of rumors he'd picked up from informants. He needed to find out their plans before it got too far along.

~~ Diana's room ~~

Diana had just finished her prayers to all her patron goddesses before her altar. She had asked Athena for guidance as she was still struggling to come to a conclusion regarding things that she began to realize about Bruce. Upon returning to the Watchtower that night two weeks ago, she questioned to herself Bruce's calling her Princess. That name sent off alarms in her head, and while she was indeed a Princess of the Amazons, he had called her that as an almost term of endearment. Only one other person referred to her that way, and that was Batman. She began thinking back to the details of her time spent with Bruce and then placed it against the time she'd spent with Batman. There were similarities between the two men aside from the pet name they called her by. Also that night, Bruce was able to slip up right next to her without her noticing it. That was no small feat for anyone to accomplish, let alone a mortal with no extra powers to utilize. Both men had a similar height and physique as well.

The more Diana thought it over the more it seemed to trouble her. How could a man such as Bruce also be Batman? Bruce was caring and thoughtful of her at all times. He was always smiling and laid back, and he actually ducked behind her at the charity gala when the unexpected guest came in before Batman had shown up to apprehend him. That caused Diana to wonder if her mind was merely playing tricks on her. In watching movies with Flash, she had heard numerous characters refer to females as princess. Perhaps Bruce just felt Diana was a princess in his view of her. Also, she was at the gala when both Bruce and Batman were there at the same time. That should have set her mind at ease, but there was still a lingering doubt. Batman shielded his secret identity like no other. Kal had even told her about how Batman's cowl was lined with lead to prevent x-ray vision from seeing who was underneath. Being so paranoid got on Diana's nerves constantly, but Batman would only tell her that his paranoia is what has kept him alive.

She then thought about Batman and how different he was from Bruce. There were just as many differences as there were similarities it seemed. Batman was cold and calculating, never showing any emotion. Bruce however showed such emotion from just being around a portrait of his slain parents. Batman would have never permitted a comforting hug from an acquaintance as he never even admitted that he had any friends. The Batman didn't have the luxury of friendship he would say. Batman was also so very arrogant and combative when it came to whom was right or wrong. Bruce meanwhile never seemed to argue, and if he was wrong, he seemed more than willing to accept that as the case. They seemed to be two completely different people regardless of any similarities Diana came up with.

She made sure to maintain her friendly status with Bruce whenever she was around him. She didn't want to ruin that blossoming friendship in the event that her suspicions turned out to be inaccurate. She eagerly accepted any opportunity to dance with him at the charity events. She wanted to set up a time to go horseback riding at the Manor, but she'd occupied the majority of her free time with meetings for the charities she had been interested in. She had six different organizations in the beginning that she'd been in contact with, but after attending the first social event, other organizers approached her as well for other causes.

She also wanted to train with Batman, but aside from the standard meeting, he remained in Gotham City and unavailable. She didn't know or understand why and had been trying to track him down anytime he was aboard the Watchtower. She also had to admit that she was actually alright with him not being available for the time being as she too was occupied and wouldn't have been able to train. Batman's patience would have surely worn thin had they set up times that Diana wouldn't have been able to make, and with his normal demeanor being ice cold as it was, if she'd have frustrated him by _wasting_his time, the rest of the Justice League surely would've felt the repercussions. As she got a better handle on the charity functions and things settled back into more of a routine, she would then approach Batman about his offering of training with her. He would at least work out a schedule that they both would be able to adhere to. Until then she focused on her charitable work so that she could keep her mind off of the Bruce / Batman debate that was still lingering in her mind.

~~ Batcave before patrol ~~

"You've got to be kidding!" Tim nearly shouted in excitement. He ran over to the glass cases before a stiff hand met his chest.

"Where do you think you're going?" Bruce asked.

"To get the Robin suit." Tim answered.

Bruce shook his head. "I never said that you were going out as Robin." He started. "You're not going to leave the Batmobile under any circumstances unless I instruct you to do otherwise Tim. Is that understood?"

Tim's shoulders slumped as his head dropped to where he could only see the floor of the cave at his feet. "Yes sir." He muttered.

"Tim, tonight is about learning the areas of where to patrol." Bruce explained. "You still have training with me to complete before you head out to provide backup. That will come soon enough. Until then you need to remain patient and keep learning as much as you can."

Tim perked up a little bit from the thought of training with the great Batman. Bruce handed him a bullet proof vest, black pants, long sleeve shirt, and a mask to protect his identity. When Tim reached for the mask, Bruce grabbed his hand at the wrist. He knelt down in front of Tim before he spoke. "This mask is the most important thing in the world when you are out there Tim." Bruce explained. "This protects not only you, but Dick, Barbara, Alfred, and your father from any reprisal. Treasure it and respect it."

Tim nodded his head in understanding before taking the mask from Bruce's hands. He took everything and changed in the locker area. When he returned, he was covered basically head to toe in black. Bruce had slipped on the cowl while he waited and walked over to the Batmobile. Tim eagerly joined him by flipping into the car and landing perfectly on the passenger seat. Batman just shook his head as he never quite grasped the enthusiasm for going on patrol. It was just a necessary part of his mission and vow, not something he looked forward to. He actually only looked forward to a time where Batman wouldn't be needed anymore and he hoped that someday that time would come. Perhaps he would live to see it or, or perhaps not. If not then Nightwing, Batgirl, and Tim as the new Robin would be there to take over the mission. When Tim was strapped in, Batman powered on the Batmobile and sped away for patrol.

He stayed in the Batmobile more than he usually did so that he could offer more training for Tim. He also wanted to limit any opportunities for Tim to try and slip out to follow on foot. Batman still hadn't gained that level of trust with the young man to allow him to be on his own for a long length of time. It also helped that all of the worst Gotham had to offer were still behind bars. This had been the longest tenure of what could be called peace for Gotham since before Bruce was even conceived by his parents. A part of him was saddened by the fact that not even two months was thought of as a long time for peace on the streets. Although he knew that it wouldn't last, the lull in criminal activity did help to allow him more time to train with the eventual new Robin.

Batman was still able to take down a handful of attempted muggings on this night. He allowed Tim to watch utilizing cameras in the cowl as he went through capturing the would be muggers and restraining them to a nearby light pole. Each time he returned, Tim had questions for him to answer. He didn't mind the questions as they were insightful as to why he did things a specific way. Tim even grabbed a piece of rope and began practicing the method of tying knots that Batman used on the restraints. All in all, Bruce was very impressed with the young man. It was not surprising to him at all now how Tim had progressed so quickly through training. He also seemed to have an endless supply of energy that didn't require caffeine. Batman wondered just how many nights it would take before that wore off. Living a double life was extremely taxing on energy levels for anyone, and no doubt Tim would experience that issue as well.

The next stop was the crime scene of a murder. A man had been strangled to death and found in a back alley when the police were called. Batman worked alongside Commissioner Gordon as the scene was processed. Tim watched the cameras intently as Batman worked the scene looking for evidence. He made sure to be extremely thorough, which had come to be expected of the Batman over the years. There truly was no one better at collecting evidence and connecting the dots to solving a crime. Sure enough, after some time had passed, Batman was able to utilize his evidence scanner to discover that this was just a drop site and not the place where the murder had occurred. He was able to locate some tire tracks that were likely from the murderer's vehicle as well as some fibers on the body, and sent the brand and size of tire to the Commissioner's desk so that the police could sort out all of the car types that used the specific tire that had left the marks.

Patrol came to an end early as the night was slow yet again. Bruce wasn't accustomed to such inactivity, and his leads on the League of Shadows had turned out to be empty, but he knew they were up to something. He would just have to do some more digging to find out what. When they returned to the cave, he had Tim input the logs from patrol, and was again astounded by the details Tim was supplying. He didn't seem to miss a thing. Bruce watched over Tim until he finished updating the logs and left to shower before heading to bed. Bruce was actually beginning to look forward to the day when Tim would be ready to don the Robin uniform.

~~ Watchtower, in the Monitor Womb the following afternoon ~~

Batman was sitting and impatiently waiting for Flash to show up for his Monitor Duty shift. He was ten minutes late already, and each passing second only further increased Batman's ire. Even though the young man had a valid excuse in that he'd just finished dealing with Captain Boomerang, Batman still had better things to do than sit doing nothing. He wanted to input more security into that transportation room to further insure that no unwanted guests would be able to easy latch on to the signal and come aboard unexpectedly. When Flash's signal finally came through, Batman wasted no time in leaving the Monitor Womb as quickly as possible. If he were to linger there for any time, he'd likely not leave until the Flash was injured severely for taking so long. As he marched towards the transporter room, he almost ran right into Diana in the hallway. "Batman." She said greeting him.

"Diana." He responded as he began to walk around her only to see that she changed directions and was joining him. He tried his best to ignore her, but that had always been impossible and nothing about that issue had changed. "Do you need something Princess?" He asked.

"Actually, I wanted to talk about training with you." She explained. "My schedule is controlled again from all the charities I've decided to help, and I hoped we could compare schedules and see what time we could set aside."

"Send me your schedule for the next six weeks and I'll let you know what time is available." He said as he marched into the transporter room.

Diana was beginning to think that Batman was making for a quick exit, and she was hoping she could get a quick training session out of him before he returned for patrol of his city. "We haven't seen much of you lately Batman." She said. "I was beginning to think you were trying to avoid us."

"I've been busy." The standard Batman response.

"Are…you leaving already?" She asked with a hint of disappointment in her voice.

He stopped and looked her in the eyes. "No, I was going to add some security patches to the transporters."

"Would you think you could spare some time for a training session with me right now?" Diana asked hoping he would say yes, but knowing it was unlikely.

Batman stood there studying her motives for a few moments. Diana wasn't able to lie or hide things even if she'd wanted to. He looked at a clock and realized there were still a couple of hours before he would need to leave on patrol. He sighed as he answered her. "I suppose I can spare some time."

Diana was too excited to hide it on her face as she turned and followed Batman to the training rooms. He maintained his normal pace through the halls as she walked beside him. Before long they were inside of a training room and Batman was standing opposite Diana. "Attack me." He commanded.

Diana hesitated for a moment, but then followed through with Batman's order and attempted to strike at him with a straight right. He aptly side stepped away and stood in front of her again. "Balance is the first lesson, Princess." He said. "Always maintain your balance. Now attack again. This time actually try and hit me."

Diana glared at him for a second before she charged forward again with another attempted strike. Instead of attempting just one strike though, she continued with a roundhouse kick, followed by an uppercut, a sweeping leg kick, and a reversed elbow strike when she got in closer to him. Batman had dodged the punch, blocked the roundhouse kick, pushed the uppercut to the side, stepped over the leg sweep attempt, and caught her arm in his hands before the elbow could connect with his head. "Balance isn't just about the body Diana." He instructed. "It's about the mind as well. When you attacked just now, you let your emotions get the better of you. While anger can be useful in a battle, you have to channel it to maintain a balance so that you don't attack irrationally."

Diana stepped back for a moment and processed what Batman had told her. He was right that his jab about actually hitting him had angered her. She'd never had to rely on controlling her emotions during battle before, and if she were to ever face someone with Batman's fighting knowledge, she'd be in for the battle of her life, and for the first time, and she actually believed there was a chance that she could lose.

After a few mind clearing deep breaths, she attempted to attack again while focusing on keeping the attacks controlled. She was getting closer and closer to landing a clean blow on him as he started increasing the amount of moves to avoid her advances. Eventually he caught her in a bad position and performed a hip toss followed up by landing on top of her. She squirmed underneath him as she attempted to free herself from his grip without using her powers until she noticed him looking at her directly in her eyes. His face was only a couple inches away from hers. Her breath hitched as she felt overcome by a feeling she'd not experienced before. The closest thing she could think of to compare it to was excitement, but it was so much more intense. Batman stayed there for a few seconds thinking of how he would get out of this predicament had the roles been reversed. Then an idea came to him. "In order to escape such a hold Diana, you need to free your left hand and reach across to my left arm. From there you grab it just above the elbow, and pull it while rolling your body in the direction that you pull my arm."

Diana did as Batman instructed, and she was able to free herself from his hold. She was happy to have learned a way to escape such a precarious position, and that feeling she had been experiencing just a moment ago finally began to die down so she could focus. They spent the next twenty minutes training together, and Batman had taught Diana three specific moves that would aid her in battle, should she ever become in such a troubled position. She was truly grateful for the lesson and disappointed when the time had ended, and Batman had to return to the transporter room so that he could apply the security patches before leaving for patrol. But still, she was in a very good mood following the short training session. She'd learned a very important lesson about balance that Batman seemed to swear by. When he was in balance mentally and physically, he was quite the dangerous opponent, and through years of training he'd apparently perfected his technique on maintaining balance. Diana stayed in the training room after Batman left for a few minutes as she just soaked in the last half hour with him. She still didn't understand what had come over her when he pinned her down, and she was curious about it and why it affected her so. However, in her good mood, she decided a nice hot shower was in order, and perhaps a call to make plans with her friend Bruce. She was anxious to enjoy a nice horseback ride with him. If she could find the time to fit it in, this would be one of the best weeks she'd ever experienced while living in man's world. Also she knew that with Batman's training, her free time would likely evaporate very soon, and she didn't want to leave Bruce disappointed.


	16. Chapter 16: Open Door Policy

Batman transported himself down to the Batcave before he'd started downloading the software security patches on the Transporter. He didn't want to have to take a Javelin down, and the patches would take the better part of the evening to finish where the Transporter would be operable again. In order to make the changes, it had to be shut down so that no one would mistakenly attempt to use it. The patch downloads could potentially cause harmful damage to anyone that attempted to travel using it until the downloads were completed. When he arrived, he remotely began the process of shutting the Transporter down so that the patches could begin downloading. He telepathically reached out to J'onn and informed him of the status before leaving as well so that word could be spread about the upgrade.

As he made his way from the Teleporter pad towards the Cray super computers; removing his cowl along the way, Bruce stopped in his tracks. He noticed that something was amiss. As Bruce glanced around the seemingly desolate cave, he realized that the Robin suit was not in its glass case any longer. His first thought went directly to the young man that had an interest in it. Tim had to be around the cave somewhere. Bruce didn't believe he was foolish enough to do otherwise, lest he blow his chance to eventually become Robin at all. Bruce closed his eyes for a moment and took a long and slow breath in order to better focus on his surroundings. After a few seconds in the complete silence he finally heard it. The sound of a batarang striking the cave wall in one of the lower levels could be heard now. Tim was training with batarangs in the section of the cave large enough for such things as well as far enough away from the expensive equipment. Bruce made his way to that area of the cave quietly, and watched when he was close enough to see what it was that Tim was up to.

Tim had been throwing batarangs at makeshift targets. After he'd thrown about ten, he then pulled out a grapple gun and fired it off. He was using the grappling to practice swinging throughout the cave while at the same time retrieving the batarangs he'd thrown earlier. Bruce was again impressed with the young man's initiative even though he still wasn't pleased about Tim taking the Robin suit out of its case and putting it on. The boy seemed to know what he wanted though, and Bruce couldn't help but to respect that. When Tim landed from retrieving all of the batarangs he'd thrown, Bruce made his presence known by clearing his throat. That had startled Tim, making him jump off his feet for a moment before trying to catch his breath and regain his composure. "Oh uh…..hi Bruce." Tim struggled to get out. "Guess you found out I tried on the Robin suit, huh."

Bruce crossed his arms in front of his chest as his only response. "Umm…..right…I'll just go…..put it away then." Tim squeaked out as he began walking passed Bruce back to the main level. He was stopped in his tracks by a hand landing on one of his shoulders. Tim looked back up towards Bruce, curious as to what he was thinking. Bruce looked Tim directly in the young man's eyes. "I know you're anxious to be the next Robin, Tim but you aren't ready…..yet." Bruce said. "Don't let that discourage you though because you are heading down the right path to what you are looking for. It won't be too much longer if you keep progressing at the same rate you have been."

Tim cheered up a little upon hearing that from Bruce. He followed Bruce back up to the main section of the cave and up to the computers. Tim watched as Bruce mapped out the patrol he planned for that night as he pinpointed certain areas on the map. Bruce went through what each pin meant as he set the path out for Tim to see. It didn't take long before Tim worked out the why's when he linked the stops for tonight to the information he'd put in last night's logs. When Bruce was done going over the initial plan for that night's patrol, Tim started walking over to the locker room area to change out of the Robin suit and into the same tactical gear that Bruce had provided the night before. "Wait Tim." Bruce said stopping the young man in his tracks. "Give me your word that you will follow last night's instructions and not deviate from them one bit."

"Yeah Bruce." Tim answered. "I won't leave the car unless you tell me otherwise."

"Good." Bruce said while pulling the cowl back over his face. "Let's go then." Batman walked over to the Batmobile and jumped in while Tim stood still, seemingly unable to move. "Are you coming?"

That snapped Tim out of his frozen state, and he ran to the car jumping into the passenger seat smiling from ear to ear. "So I'm Robin now?" He asked hopefully.

"Not yet." Batman answered. "But the suit fits you well enough and it offers more protection than a bullet proof vest does. You have things to learn that can't be done from the passenger seat of the Batmobile, but you'll only come out for secure crime scenes to learn more about forensics and evidence collection."

Tim couldn't help but to keep smiling. He couldn't believe that he was actually getting to ride in the Batmobile next to Batman while in the actual Robin suit. It was like a dream come true for the young man, and he was going to savor all aspects of this night.

Batman motored through the streets of Gotham on his search for the League of Shadows among other criminals. He would occasionally stop to hop out for a random mugging attempt, but quickly returned back to the car and continued on. For the first couple of hours it seemed like it was going to be an uneventful night for Gotham. The weather certainly wasn't a deterrent for the lowlife of the city as it was a warm and clear summer night. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and almost no wind at all. When Batman came up to one of his normal stops, he parked the Batmobile in the dark alley, opened the hatch and jumped out. After performing a sweep of the area and confirming that it was secure, he turned back to Tim. "Get out." He barked.

Tim stood up from his seat, giving Batman a questioning look. This wasn't a crime scene after all. When the Dark Knight reached for his grapple gun, raised his arm, and fired it at a nearby rooftop Tim knew that he was serious and climbed out. He still had his grapple gun from training earlier in the night, and followed suit firing it off to catch up to his mentor. As he retracted the line and flew in the air, he could hear the security system engaging on the Batmobile behind him, and then it set in that he was actually going to patrol some on foot with Batman. His excitement couldn't get any higher than that moment. It was his excitement that caused his first mistake of the evening as he didn't react in time to remove the grapple from the wall so that he could use his forward momentum to make it onto the rooftop. Instead he was stuck at the bottom of the ledge dangling from his own line. Batman had to offer Tim his hand and pull him the rest of the way up. He was not happy about such an easy mistake, and thought about having Tim return to the Batmobile. However he could see that the boy was cursing at himself for the error, and decided against it for the time being. He instead fired his grapple at another rooftop and made a running jump off the building and swinging passed it before once again disengaging the grapple and finishing his approach by landing gracefully up the next building over.

Tim was aggravated by the rookie mistake he'd made, and realized that Batman's departure without admonishing him back to the car was a sign that this was another test. If he failed this time, he would have no choice but to sit in the car and wait until he'd had more training. Only God and Bruce would know when Batman would willingly take him back out on the streets again. Failure was simply not an option this time around. He carefully took aim and fired his grapple at the same building as Batman had, took a deep breath, and ran to the building's edge before leaping off. It was like slow motion for Tim at that particular moment, just before gravity took its grip on him and began pulling him toward the ground. Tim retracted the line in order to remove the slack from his jump, and started the swing towards Batman. As he passed the building and began to swing upwards, he released the trigger on the grapple, allowing more line to come out which helped to bring him closer to the building that Batman was waiting on. When he was sure, he clicked another trigger to release the grip of the grapple completely and began retracting the line as his momentum carried him the last couple feet upwards. When the momentum ceased, Tim stuck his foot out and was able to reach the ledge safely.

Batman was standing at the ready to leap after Tim if he didn't time the jump right or had another miscue. He let go of a breath that he didn't realize he was holding when Tim touched down on the rooftop just before him. The landing was sloppy and he let the line back out too quickly which almost took away too much momentum to complete the necessary altitude, but the grapple release point and retraction were done at the exact time that they needed to be. By the time Tim's feet had touched down, the claw end of the grapple was just snapping back into the grapple gun. It was at least a good starting point for the young man to polish up some rough edges that would come with more experience.

Batman had Tim follow around on rooftops during the rest of patrol. It was much easier to slip around the city unnoticed without the rumble of the Batmobile. During this time Batman had come across a group of gang members that had pulled an innocent couple into a dark alley. They had knocked the man unconscious using the butt of a handgun and were holding the woman up against a wall at knifepoint. The man with the knife was right up against the woman with one hand covering her mouth, muffling any attempts at screaming while the other three men were going through the male victim's pockets; pulling out his wallet and any other valuables. Tim started to jump into action on instinct, but Batman placed a hand on the young man's chest stopping him cold in his tracks. "Rule one." Batman said quietly. "Always mind your surroundings, especially before jumping into battle." Tim looked up at Batman in anger for a moment before he saw Batman point to a dark portion of the alley. Tim couldn't see anything there, but Batman flipped on his night-vision, and seeing this, Tim followed suit.

Using night-vision, they could both now clearly see everything in the alley. There were no other perpetrators to be found and with that, Batman switched off his night-vision and leapt off the rooftop, but not before ordering Tim to stay put.

"Well well well, seems we've got ourselves a real looker here." One of the thugs said while looking at the pinned female victim after he'd picked the male victim's pockets. "What should we do with you?"

The man with the knife at the woman's throat licked his lips in anticipation as he had what he believed to be an excellent plan for what to do to her. He slowly dragged the backside of the knife blade from her throat on a course down the front of the woman; sliding it between her breasts and down her abdomen before reaching the bottom of her shirt. Once there, he turned the blade and began to cut upward through the fabric in a slow and terrifying motion for the woman. She knew what was on this man's mind and she was powerless to stop him unless she wanted him to kill her. She didn't get the chance to weigh her options of certain death over rape with a mere possibility of living because of the man that landed from out of the sky behind the thug. Batman immediately grabbed the man's hand that was holding the knife, and through sheer brute strength, he yanked it away from the innocent woman's body, which also caused the thug to spin around.

The thug was in shock to see the Batman before him almost snarling. He tried to throw a punch with his free hand, but Batman merely blocked it before spinning around and yanking the arm with the knife in hand down over Batman's own shoulders. A loud snap could be heard followed by a combination of the man screaming and the clanking of the knife hitting the ground. A batarang came out from Batman's kneeling position, which struck the hand of the other thug that had the gun. His fingers were smashed from the metal batarang connecting against them, and he couldn't keep hold of the gun any longer. Batman quickly launched a bola at the other two men, tying them up tightly together. He then went over to the man that had been holding the gun and latched onto him by the throat before slamming him up against the wall of a building. That man lost control out of fear and proceeded to make a wet mess of the front of his pants before passing out. Batman let go and watched as the man crumpled to the ground before him. He then heard the sound of the final thug with the broken up stepping towards him. But before Batman could react, he heard the whirling sound of a batarang before it struck its target, and the next sound was that man behind him crumpling to the ground as well. Batman looked up to see Tim saluting him as a Boy Scout would have.

Batman would have scowled at Tim for his involvement had the woman not come running up to him and hugging him in appreciation for saving her. She was still crying and shaking in fear as she held onto Batman thanking him between sobs over and over again. Eventually she calmed enough and released her savior to go and check on her date who was still unconscious in the middle of the alley. Batman saw to the thugs as he restrained them all and ordered the woman to call the police before he used his grapple to fly away back to Gotham's rooftops. Upon landing, Tim had a smile on his face, but that only lasted until he noticed the glare that Batman was giving him. "I thought I told you not to do anything unless I instructed you otherwise." Batman seethed at the young man.

"But the guy was coming up behind you with a knife." Tim argued with a half pleading tone to his voice.

"I know, and I had him right where I wanted him." Batman fired back. "You are NOT to get involved under ANY circumstances unless I instruct you otherwise. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir." Tim said as his eyes were looking down at his boots.

"Get back to the car." Batman instructed. "I'm taking you back to the cave."

~~ Bludhaven ~~

Nightwing and Batgirl were having an extremely eventful evening. They had been very successful bringing the criminal element to justice in all forms, shapes, and sizes from random muggings to break-in's, and even had gotten some tips on some mob activity. They had to split up at certain points of the night in order to get as much accomplished as they could. He was not about to let Bludhaven slip away from the good and innocent people that still lived there. They had selected a small clock tower for a meeting point as they'd agreed to do two hour sweeps and return with any information or details to share. If he were to admit it to himself, it was also so that he could be sure that Batgirl was still alright. He cared for her deeply even though they'd agreed to see other people over a year ago. They were still great friends though no matter what happened between the two of them. The first members of the Batclan would always share a special connection with one another.

On the third two hour window ending, Nightwing was the first to show up at the clock tower. The other two times Batgirl had been waiting for him. "Batgirl." He called out as he looked for her in the shadows.

"She's a little tied up at the moment." Came the voice of a man Dick didn't recognize.

"What have you done with her?" Dick demanded as he clenched his fists. This man would pay if he hurt Barbara at all.

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" The man offered. "She's right over there."

A light came on which revealed an unconscious Batgirl tied up and dangling against a wall of the clock tower in shackles. Nightwing immediately went to help her, but just as he was close enough to reach for her, he was met with a backhanded fist to his face. The blast was enough to break his nose instantly, and blood quickly began to gush out. He wiped the blood away from under his nose as he got back up to his feet. The man who had struck him stepped out from the shadows and revealed himself. He was large; standing well above six feet in height, and judging from the mass of his body, Nightwing figured his opponent to be well over 250 lbs as well. "All right big fella lets dance." He said as he charged at the man standing before him.

~~ Watchtower, Monitor Womb ~~

Diana was in the Monitor Womb talking to J'onn while he kept an eye on the monitors. She was intrigued by his Martian principles and had a desire to learn about her friend. There were some little intricacies that Diana was still struggling to come to grips with such as why J'onn was so infatuated with two black cookies smashed together and held by a cream filling. J'onn was attempting to explain it to her when an alert sounded off. "The Mt. Rainier volcano is erupting." He stated. "But something isn't right."

"What is it J'onn?" Diana asked.

"Normally the scientists there can predict volcanic activity, and according to reports, this has taken them completely by surprise." He explained before delving deeper into the information that they were picking up on the area. "Look at this when I play back the last 24 hours of activity."

They both watched the satellite images of the volcano as it was completely dormant for the majority of the time window until the last hour. It was there that J'onn noticed an anomaly. "There, the tectonic plate showed a massive amount of movement. That is not a natural movement of the planet's shifting. We need to begin evacuating immediately, but the Teleporter will not be up for another hour."

"Put in a call to the others, and we'll take a Javelin down." Diana instructed. "I'll contact Batman." She reached up to her communicator and opened a channel paging him.

~~ Batmobile ~~

"Batman here. What is it Diana?" He asked as he was driving back to the cave.

"J'onn picked up some abnormal activity of the Earth's tectonic plates, and believes it has caused a volcanic reaction. We need to meet together and help with evacuations, and investigate whether this was a natural act of God or if someone has found a way to tamper with the Earth's plates."

"Hold on." Batman stated as he engaged the autopilot and began looking through reports on the Batmobile's computer. He flipped through seven pages of documentation before he found what J'onn was referring to. "He's right. This was a result of some manmade device. There's no way that tectonic plate would have shifted so far or so quickly. Not naturally at least."

"So you'll meet us there?" She asked. "We have to take a Javelin down since the Teleporters are still down."

"I'm almost back to the cave." Batman stated. "Once there I'll get the Batwing prepped and meet you at the volcano. Batman out."

He stepped on the gas, knowing that time was of the essence in order to save as many people as possible. Perhaps they could find a way to utilize Superman's and Diana's strength in order to divert any flow of lava. In the meantime he was processing the information as to why the plate had shifted so violently. All records indicated that nothing of this sort had ever happened before. There wasn't a shift even close to the magnitude and speed of this one. It had to have been something caused by technology, and if that was the case, who was behind it? As he continued researching, Mt. St. Helens began to erupt as well. It was less violent, but still in the same vicinity of Washington state. "Batman to Watchtower." He called into his communicator again.

"Yes Batman." J'onn answered.

"I assume you've seen a second volcano is beginning to erupt in the same area." It was more a statement than a question. "Have Superman onsite looking for some type of manmade device to have caused this. I'm not certain, but with a plate shift of this size, I'd be hard pressed to believe whatever is the cause wouldn't be extremely large in size. This just can't be natural. It's unprecedented."

"Agreed. We are all ready to travel down in the Javelin." J'onn responded. "We'll meet you there."

Batman went as fast as he could back to the Batcave. Even though he was a mortal, he still could offer some help in perhaps locating whatever the cause was and discovering how to shut it down. As he sped home he reached speeds of over 150 mph on more than one occasion through some straight stretches of road, but he wished he could get there faster.

~~ Bludhaven ~~

Nightwing was crawling towards the still restrained Batgirl. He'd received quite the beating at the hands of this large masked man. He'd hit the villain with some of his best shots, but it had only seemed to make the man smile and return back with even more power than before. Nightwing began to believe this man was a Meta with super strength and healing. He'd been getting beaten to every punch and kick now for some time. It was surprising that the world hadn't gone dark yet from all the punishment he had absorbed. The large man approached again when it became obvious that Nightwing wasn't climbing back to his feet. The man reached down and picked Nightwing up by his neck and held him in the air with one hand. Definitely had to be a Meta.

Batgirl had come to by this point and saw Nightwing defeated and barely conscious. "Why are you doing this?" She asked as she began to strain against her bonds trying to break free.

"Because I am finishing what Deadshot should have." The man answered.

Someone had paid for Dick to be murdered. Barbara gasped from hearing this coming from the large masked man. "So going to kill Nightwing for what? Money?" She prodded for more information and to distract the attacker as long as she could. She was trying valiantly to free herself at this point knowing that time would be short.

"His death is necessary for my plans to take place without interruption." The masked man responded again as he walked towards Batgirl. Suddenly he lunged his other hand at her throat and ripped her away from her restraints. "As is yours." He said in a quiet and confident voice when he brought her face up in front of his own. She started to wonder why would he need Nightwing and Batgirl killed to keep from interfering. What was in this man's plans that they could even interfere with? She tried to get herself free, but struggle as she might, she was helpless. While the man had yanked her away from what restrained her to the wall, her arms were still tied to her sides. She began to feel dizzy as the man was choking the life out of her. She didn't notice the slight movement from her side, but did hear two distinct beeps before an explosion occurred.

Nightwing had put everything into one final move, sticking an explosive on the large man's chest. The man was able to look down by the time the second beep sounded, but that was too late. The explosion was enough to get the man to release his grip; however, he had been holding them both over the edge of the rooftop. When the man released his grip, both Batgirl and Nightwing fell from the building top. Batgirl was restrained and couldn't do anything to help either of them. Nightwing was able to secure a grapple to the wall and grab hold of Batgirl, but when the line became taut, he was in too much pain to keep hold of the grapple gun. His actions were just enough to slow their fall slightly, but they still hit a dumpster below hard upon landing. Luckily both avoided the metal sides, but inside the dumpster, there wasn't enough cushion, and they both were knocked out cold from the impact. The lids to the dumpster fell shut from the rattle of two bodies landing in it from so high up.

The large man stood back up and dusted himself off from the explosion. It had been painful, but tolerable for him to take. He'd dealt with worse pain in his life than that. He walked over to the ledge and looked down, where he saw nothing. Perhaps the heroes had escaped. At that point he pulled out his burn phone and checked the time. It was time to move on in his plan. Nightwing was incapacitated for certain, and Batgirl would have to contend with her injured teammate. It would be quite a while before either of them could do anything to stop him from his plans at this point, and he decided to proceed forward with stopping the Batman. He used that burn phone to dial a number and hit send before sliding the phone back into a pants pocket and walking away. He'd finish off the two Batclan members another time. Perhaps when they tried to avenge their soon to be fallen mentor.

~~ Batcave ~~

Batman had just pulled into the Batcave and hopped out of the Batmobile. He wasted little time in beginning a pre flight diagnostic while also going over to the computer and checking on the status of the volcanoes. A third one had become active as well by this point. He had too little information to know for certain if this one was going to erupt or not, but he had little time to worry about that. They needed to find the cause of this volcanic action and put a stop to it. Batman quickly went and restocked his belt as he sent Tim to get some rest. He definitely wasn't going to be attending a Justice League matter with Batman anyways.

Batman climbed into the Batwing and was strapping himself in when Tim came running back down into the cave. "Bruce!" He yelled, stopping Batman from continuing his actions towards launching the jet.

"What is it Tim?" He asked seeing the concern etched on the young man's face.

"Arkham." Tim responded. "There was an explosion at Arkham. Everyone's escaped."

This was just the news that he didn't need to hear. Batman reached up to his communicator and opened up a designated channel. "Nightwing, come in." He would see if Dick and Barbara could handle the Asylum for now, but there was nothing but silence on the other end. "Nightwing, respond." He barked. Still no response, so he switched to Batgirl. "Batgirl, sit-rep. Where is Nightwing?"

Batman continued trying to reach Dick and Barbara, fear creeping up his spine from worry about two of the people he considered family. He leapt out of the Batwing and sprinted over to the computer, where he pulled up the vitals readouts for Nightwing and Batgirl's suits. There was some interference that made it difficult to pinpoint their location, but they were both together, and that eased Batman's mind a tad for the moment. He was also able to display their vitals and found that both were still alive. "Tim, get Alfred and both of you go and check on Dick and Barbara." He said while handing Tim the tracking device and a communicator. "Wear this and contact me as soon as you find them. I need to know that they're alright."

"What about you?" Tim asked.

"I'm going to handle the escaped inmates of Arkham." Batman responded before sending Tim back up to the Manor.

He went back to the Batwing, and strapped back in. He was in flight and headed for Arkham Asylum when he again used his communicator, opening a general channel. "Batman to Justice League." He called.

"This is Diana." Wonder Woman responded. "What's your ETA Batman? We could use more help locating the cause of this."

"I'm not going to make it." Batman responded.

"How can you not come when we need you?" Diana asked in a more berating tone than questioning.

"Explosion at Arkham has let loose all the inmates. Nightwing and Batgirl aren't responding to take that on, so I have to stay here." Batman explained.

Diana's response was what he'd expected of her. "I'll come and hel…"

"No." Batman interrupted. "You said it yourself. The League needs all the help it can get. I can handle this. Get to the bottom of the cause for the volcanic activity there. That's more important. Batman out."

He closed the channel before Diana had the chance to respond. She could only think one thing for her teammate, and that was to be careful. She offered a quick prayer to her gods, and returned her focus on altering the direction of the lava flow so that it would head out to sea, and have as little impact on the civilian populous as possible while Superman was searching for what was causing this to happen.

Batman arrived onsite at the Asylum and exited the jet where he could land on top of Arkham. There were some inmates that remained there that he could help the police take care of. He also hoped the police could keep the rest of the inmates pinned down from getting too far away from the outside walls of the Asylum, and he would take them down from the inside. He hoped to meet Jim Gordon somewhere in the middle and restore order before any further chaos ensued.


	17. Chapter 17: Blow Out

Batman dropped in through the Asylum's ventilation shafts. He wanted to remain cloaked in stealth for as long as possible as his first task was to find out all he could before making his presence known. He needed to know who all was still holed up inside Arkham, and who the police were trying to keep pinned down that had made it outside. In order to maintain knowledge of both areas, he'd had to reluctantly reach out to Tim again while the boy and Alfred were on their way to Bludhaven. Batman instructed Tim to use the onboard computer system while in transit to keep an eye on the situation with the police. He needed to know if they were able to hold their lines and keep all the inmates from getting too far out into the city. He left the channel open for communication as he also wanted to be kept in the loop regarding the rest of the Batclan. In the meantime, Batman focused on his own objective as he traveled silently through the ductwork, looking for a good opening to exit. He could hear things as they were smashed or slammed around as well as yelling and echoing throughout the facility. The sounds could only be described as chaos as the lunatics were running around, looking for any possible escape. It had already been enough time where the organized crime bosses such as Falcone or Black Mask would have gotten together with all their imprisoned men. They would then have either formed alliances or started attempting to take control from the other group using any form of weaponry at their disposal. Batman just hoped that the main gallery of villains was still safely locked up in their isolated cells. Batman went through some twists and turns before he was able to locate a safe enough area to exit without being seen. He pulled out a device that would lock on and unscrew a ventilation grate that was blocking his exit. As the last screw was removed, Batman latched onto the grate with his free hand to ensure that it didn't drop to the floor and make a clanking sound. He moved the grate to the side and looked around for a moment to ensure that the coast was clear before he jumped out and landed. He set the grate down against the hall and made his way down the corridor. His focus remained on what was in front of him as well as watching the angle of the surveillance cameras. If any of the inmates were in the security offices, they would be able to see him inside if one of those cameras was to catch a glimpse of him. At first, he thought of just trying to weave his way through, but then he thought better of that and approached the closest camera to his position. After finding one, he reached up and unscrewed the cable attached to it, and opened up his gauntlet covered computer. He took the line and plugged it into the gauntlet before he started typing commands. Soon, on the screen Batman could see every camera feed in the entire facility. Unfortunately some of the feeds showed him that the isolated cells had been opened, and no villains remained locked up. Batman clenched his fists into tight balls as he knew that he would now have to deal with the most violent criminals Gotham had to offer. No doubt that Two-Face and the Joker would have rounded up men that would follow them to where they believed the best chance of freedom would be. Batman wouldn't have much time to sulk in the knowledge of how busy his night was going to be as he could hear two voices coming his direction. He slinked into a dark corner and waited as they approached. "Patience Victor." A deep voice called out. "I'm taking you the quickest way to what you want." "You better not be jerking me around doc." The voice of Victor Zsasz responded. Batman watched as one of the psychiatrists came around the corner with his hands behind his head just in front of Victor Zsasz, who was handling a piece of broken glass with a towel wrapped around as a makeshift handle to a shiv. He was prodding the psychiatrist in the back with the shiv just softly enough to keep it from penetrating. "How much farther?" Victor yelled. "Just down this hallway and to the left Victor." The doctor responded. Neither the psychiatrist nor Victor Zsasz noticed Batman as they walked by him. This worked out perfectly for the Dark Knight as he stepped out and followed behind them closely for a few steps. Victor thought he had heard something behind him and he froze in his tracks for a moment just before both of his wrists were confined by two large black gloved hands. The hand with the shiv was slammed against a nearby wall, and even had Victor held onto it, the shiv was now useless as the glass shattered into small pieces. Batman released his hold and ducked a wild right hand before he returned fire with an overhand left that struck true against the side of Victor's face. That was all that it took to leave the man in a crumpled pile on the floor. He turned to face the doctor, who was watching in awe. "Are you alright doctor….?" He began to ask. "Doctor Strange." The doctor finished for him. "Doctor Hugo Strange. I must say Batman; it is an honor to be in your presence. You are quite the intriguing specimen, intriguing indeed." Batman gave the doctor a sidelong glance due to his comments for a moment. "Are there any other staff members being held here?" He asked. "Oh yes Batman, I'm sure that there are." Strange answered. "But the question is, why are you here I wonder." Batman wondered if this doctor had been drugged or something. He didn't understand Strange's fascination. "Where were you leading Zsasz to down here?" He asked trying to regain the focus of the conversation. "Victor desired more firepower and believed that I had access to, um specific items that he could use other than a shard of glass." The doctor began to answer. "My main weapon you see is the couch. It's somewhere I intend to have more intricate discussions with someone like you Batman. I want to understand why you do this and place yourself needlessly in danger by yourself. A man such as yourself must really not believe of themselves as worth living in order to do what you do each night." "I don't have time for this Strange." Batman cut in. "Do you have a secure area to stay until Arkham is under control again?" The doctor began to answer again before Batman cut him off. "Get there and stay until the coast is clear." Batman stormed away from the doctor towards the next source of trouble as he wanted to leave Strange as quickly as possible. The name certainly seemed to fit the doctor, he thought. Strange stood there watching until Batman disappeared from view. He was musing to himself for a few moments before turning and heading in the direction that he had been leading Zsasz earlier. ~~ Bludhaven ~~ Alfred pulled the car up next to the location where the homing beacon had been pinging since he and Tim had left the Manor. Clouds had moved in quickly on this night and a storm was threatening to dump a large quantity of rain down on the two sister cities. Both Alfred and Tim exited the car with the tracking device in hand as they walked together following the source of the beacons. Eventually they walked up to a dumpster and realized that they were as close to the beacons as they could get. Alfred reached up and flipped open the dumpster lead before he peered inside. Tim was relieved when he heard Alfred sigh before beginning to climb into the dumpster. "Master Timothy, if you would please fetch blankets from the trunk of the car." Alfred said as he checked over the two fallen heroes. Dick was in fairly bad shape. He'd been beaten severely. Barbara had some nasty bumps and most likely a concussion to say the least, but she hadn't been beaten as severely. Alfred placed a comforting hand on her cheek, and she started to come to. "Easy child." He said in a tender and calming voice. Barbara's eyes snapped open thrashed for a moment until her eyes focused on the older man hovering over her. She visibly relaxed from seeing Alfred's face as he began to help her sit up. "Wha….What happened?" She asked. "I thought we would be dead for sure. He had us." "Who had you?" Tim asked as he appeared over the edge of the dumpster with blankets in hand. "Now's not the time for that." Alfred said. "Right now we need to get you and Master Dick back home for treatment." Further realization struck her as she glanced around until she spotted a still unconscious Dick still laying there. Alfred took one of the blankets from Tim and wrapped it around Barbara before removing her mask and helping her out of the dumpster. She limped over to the car and climbed in the back seat. Tim climbed into the dumpster and helped Alfred wrap Dick in the other blanket before they hoisted him up over the edge, and climbed out themselves. Then they carried him over to the car and set his head onto Barbara's lap as his body laid across the back seat. Alfred and Tim climbed into the front seats of the car and took off for the manor. Barbara was trying to keep her emotions intact as she removed the mask from Dick's face. He was already turning purple from the beating he'd received. She knew the lives that they led were dangerous, but until tonight, she'd never expected that she would see Dick beaten so soundly by one man. Dick was so athletic and was very well trained by Bruce. The man that had beaten him had been a well conditioned and exceptionally trained fighter in order to have done this much damage. She fought through her memories as she tried to recall details about the attacker. She'd never seen him before he struck her in the back of the head with a great enough force to instantly knock her unconscious. The next thing she remembered was the monster as he approached her and latched onto her throat. She fought him as much as her body would allow, but she was losing the fight and dying in that man's strangling hold. She then recalled two beeps followed by an explosion. Then there was a freefall and the world went black again. Who was this attacker? What were his intentions on going after the two members of the Batclan? She tried to think back to what the man had said to her before he began squeezing the air from her. Alfred could see the concern on Barbara's face from the rear view mirror. "Don't you worry Miss Barbara." He said trying to calm her. "Master Dick is almost as resilient as Master Bruce, and I've seen that man take a much more violent beating and come out of it just fine." Barbara sighed. "I know Alfred. It's just that…..that Dick…..He didn't stand a chance against this guy. When I came to, Dick was beaten and from what I remember, the man that attacked us didn't even seem to have a scratch on him. It was like Dick couldn't even hit him." "Just one guy did this?" Tim asked. "I can't believe it." "Master Bruce needs to be made aware of this revelation." Alfred said as some concern etched on his face. "Right." Tim said as he reached for his communicator. "B, this is Tim. We got them both and are headed home." "Good." Batman responded. "What's their status? Why weren't they responsive." "We found them unconscious and beaten." Tim answered. "Dick's in pretty bad shape, but Alfred thinks he'll be okay." "Who's responsible?" Batman asked. Tim looked at Barbara, but she could only shrug her shoulders before she reached for the communicator. "Batman, its Batgirl. We don't know who it was. It was one masked man. He knocked me out and beat Nightwing badly. We didn't stand a chance against him, and we don't know what his plans are, just that they required us to be out of the way." "Alright." Batman responded. "I'm in Arkham now sorting through the mess. Have your driver give you the updates. I'll be back when I'm finished here. Batman out." ~~ Back in the Asylum ~~ Batman closed the channel on his communicator. He looked around the room he was in and all the fallen goons that had been transported there from Blackgate in preparation for the upgrades to that prison that were coming thanks to the success of the charity event the Justice League had attended. All of the men were unconscious as Batman had landed in the middle of them and took them out one by one. He'd taken a few shots from the group mob, but nothing too serious. Just a couple of extra bruises to contend with. So far he'd been able to subdue about thirty of the lower level inmates. Mr. Freeze compliantly stayed in his area, not wanting to deter his plea deal to where he could continue researching the cure for his wife. He was not going to jeopardize that for anyone. Black Mask had been able to avoid capture to this point, and actually snuck outside the walls of the Asylum to take his chances with the cops over dealing with Batman. His men fought valiantly, but in vane as they were too few to present much of a challenge. Even though they had some makeshift weaponry from what the Asylum had to offer, they still were taken down quickly. That brought the total number of men to thirty that Batman had subdued. He actually ran out of plasticuffs and had to resort to items he too had found to bound the men up. Up next were Falcone's men. They had been spilling out into the open yard once they'd broken through the armory doors. The guns helped to bring about a level of confidence that they just might be able to escape into freedom. Falcone meanwhile stayed behind as he wanted no part of being in the front lines, only to get gunned down himself. There were enough dirty cops out there that would have itchy trigger fingers due to the knowledge that he had on them. If he could he would find another way out, and joined forces with Waylon Jones. The deformed former crocodile wrestler went in search of the sewers for an outlet, but Batman had caught them both on the surveillance feeds, and tracked them down just as Killer Croc located the entrance to the sewers. Batman wasted no time in tossing a bola at Croc. Before Falcone knew it, he was leveled by a kick to the gut and a knee to the face. That was all the time Jones needed to break free of the bola, and lung at Batman. He was able to ram a shoulder into Batman's midsection, slamming up against a wall. That was a hard enough shot to cause Batman to see stars, but his shook it off quickly as Croc started throwing haymakers. The first few hit their intended target, but as the fight wore on, more and more of his attempted strikes were blocked or came up empty. Batman relied on his training to make certain the strength Croc had was deflected off as much as possible. Eventually he was able to start attacking Croc with some well placed shots. Batman didn't want to resort to it so quickly, but he needed the fight to end quickly so he threw an exploding batarang at Croc, and as soon as it exploded, he grabbed Croc's head and began ramming his knee into Croc's face repeatedly until the deformed man fell to one knee. Batman then dropped an anesthetic gas ball at the deformed man's feet before leaping away. Within seconds, Jones was no longer a threat. Batman dragged both men up to a cell where he locked them up by welding the bars together with a portable gas welder. He took a deep breath as he assessed his injuries. He'd definitely bruised his ribs, and the back of his head did make hard contact with the wall that Croc slammed him into. Possibly a slight concussion, but it was nothing to deter him from pushing forward. That was until he heard an explosion outside the facility. Batman rushed up to the hole in the wall from the previous explosion, and peered outside where he could still see the smoke rising through the air. Someone had set off a bomb by one of the police barricades, and the criminals that were outside had escaped during the confusion, and were now traipsing about Gotham. He surveyed the area, and after a few moments was able to locate the commissioner. He breathed a sigh of relief as he approached his old comrade. "What happened Jim?" He asked. "Someone caused an explosion Batman. We're still trying to figure it all out ourselves." Gordon answered. "I saw you enter from the roof earlier. What can you tell us about inside?" Batman went on to describe everyone that he'd come across while inside. After Gordon found that thirty-two men were restrained, he sent out the order to enter and look for survivors aside from Dr. Strange, whom Batman vouched was safe inside. After they settled everything on the outside, they looked through the list of people that were accounted for and found quite a few missing. Among the inmates still on the loose were Joker, Harley, Poison Ivy, Two-Face, Black Mask, and Firefly. The rest of the men and women were either subdued by police already, or had been found after the second explosion unconscious from being too close to it when it occurred. Batman knew that his night had just begun, and he needed to hunt everyone down, and do it quickly. ~~ Washington state ~~ Members of the Justice League were working feverishly on the active volcanoes as they tried to stay ahead of the molten lava that was oozing out of the mountain tops towards innocent civilians. The instantaneous activity had given the people no time to evacuate before the eruptions began. Superman was working below the surface as he tried to locate any form of device that could be triggering these events. He'd scoured every area of the state that he could think of, and was to the point where he had to begin searching out in the ocean for anything. Flash had used his super speed to create some ruts in the landscape that would cause the lava to flow out to sea, but he needed the help of Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and J'onn in clearing the path and getting closer to the volcanoes themselves. Diana and J'onn worked as a tandem in moving some large chunks of land out of the way so as to control where the lava would travel while Green Lantern created some makeshift columns for the lava to travel through with his powers until it reached the ruts Flash created earlier. Shayera took point and made certain that no one traveled near where the other heroes were intending to direct the lava flow. She also used her mace in smashing some of the boulders that were in the Flash's way. To this point their plan was working, and with that in mind, Diana began to think about Batman's predicament. No one had heard anything from him since he'd initially informed them that he would be staying in Gotham. But with all the inmates potentially running free, that had to be quite a taxing task for one man to take on. She wanted to go off and help him, but his vehement denial of her offer had left her dumbfounded as to why he wanted to always do things on his own. She was suddenly aware that her thoughts were being shared by one Martian as well as he connected telepathically to her. Is everything alright Diana? He asked. Yes J'onn, I'm just concerned about Batman. She replied. He really should have accepted help, but like always he refuses to let us help him in his city. Batman is very capable and I believe his intentions were in the right place. J'onn responded. Batman never does anything without diagnosing it, and I would guess that he believed this to be more important a task. I know J'onn. Diana conceded with a sigh. Can you reach out to him from this distance just to make sure he's not in any trouble? J'onn remained quiet for a few moments before he responded. Batman is beginning to become tired, but he is otherwise healthy and has moved onto catching the straggling escapees. Diana was relieved to hear that he was not hurt, and she returned her focus to their task at hand. Mt. St. Helens began to erupt at that point, and their attention had to return to the two mountains that were simultaneously erupting now. Superman had done what he could underneath to subdue all the activity, but each interaction seemed to only strengthen the volcanic activity. At that point he decided to focus solely on the cause and stop it. That seemed to be the only option at their disposal, but he knew nothing about what the device looked like, what it did, or how to stop it aside from destroying the device as soon as he found it. Hopefully then he would be able to do something to cause the rapidly deteriorating conditions below the Earth's surface to stabilize. ~~ Gotham ~~ Batman had been hunting two hours for the inmates that had broken loose from the police after the explosion at Arkham. He chose to go with whichever lead he came to first. Black Mask would be the hardest to find as he would simply lay low or find someone to get him out of town as quickly and discreetly as possible. The first real lead that Batman came across was in the context of some fires to amusement parks and playgrounds. He had no doubt that Firefly was the culprit, as the man was obsessed with burning down childhood places that he wasn't able to go to. How Firefly had gotten hold of his weapons was yet to be determined, and there would be time for that later. Batman deduced that the Gotham Zoo would likely be on the list and headed that way. Sure enough as Batman approached, he was alerted to a silent alarm that had just gone off at the zoo. Lynns was already inside, and Batman entered the zoo cautiously and trying not to let Firefly know of his arrival. As he walked into the zoo, he could see light flickering about inside and quickly realized that Lynns had already begun setting things ablaze. Using flamethrowers, it was only a matter of time before the entire zoo would be up in flames. He quickly worked his way through the various animal exhibits looking for Lynns, and eventually stumbled across the man setting fire to a store that carried stuffed animals for the children that attended the zoo next to the Australia exhibit. Batman got as close as he could before he let loose a batarang. The sound of the batarang slicing through the air was enough to catch Firefly's attention, and purely on reaction he spun around letting loose a fiery blast which began to melt and deflect the batarang harmlessly to the ground. "Ah c'mon Batman. Not even out five minutes and you're already trying to put me back on ice." Firefly called out before shooting another flame towards Batman. "Where did you get your suit so quickly Lynns?" Batman asked after ducking for cover and disappearing into darkness as he circled around his target. "It was a gift from the man that sprung me." Firefly answered. "Torching you up will just be the gasoline on top of the flame for me. If you come out now, I'll make it quick for you." "I hate to disappoint you Garfield, but the only thing you're getting tonight is a trip back to Arkham." Batman responded as he continued to work his way around. "It's Firefly now!" Lynns yelled as he began shooting flames out while spinning around manically in no specific direction. Batman was able to dodge the blast, but he was forced to duck for cover and back away from Firefly. This confrontation wasn't going as well as he'd hoped, and he decided to change the stakes by trying to get to some higher ground. In order to do that, he had to fire off his grapple towards a bridge further into the exhibit and flew off in a position where he knew that Firefly would notice, and notice he did as he took flight after Batman utilizing his jet pack. This had worked out just as Batman hoped it would. Now he just had to find an area where he could disarm Firefly and take him down. He landed on a bridge crosswalk that hovered over the crocodile pond. Firefly had been catching up to him the whole way there, and just as Batman landed, he zoomed by before turning around. "Roasted Bat on a catwalk, eh Batman." Firefly taunted. "That's fine with me." Firefly pulled out a grenade launcher and shot two blasts at each end of the bridge that took away any chance of escape on foot for Batman. As he assessed how to end this, Batman pulled out two batarangs and threw one into the air as he ran towards Firefly. He watched and waited to make his move until Lynns shot a blast at the oncoming projectile. At that moment, Batman fired his grapple up to his target and retracted the line, pulling himself into the air towards Lynns. By the time he'd gotten to reaching distance, Firefly had noticed and attempted to maneuver out of the way while shooting another scorching blast at Batman. When he opened fire though, Batman had taken the other batarang in his hand and jabbed it into Firefly's fuel tanks. That caused some fuel to splurge out and come into contact with the stream of flames from the flame thrower. Not even a second passed by before the fire trailed up to the tanks and exploded. The force of the blast shot both men away from each other. Batman slammed into what remained of the bridge while Firefly dropped towards the crocodile pit. Batman didn't have much time to gather the wind back into his lungs as he fired his grapple gun again at the fast dropping villain. The claw end latched onto Firefly just as he hit the water. Batman retracted the line in time to prevent Lynns from becoming a snack for the crocodiles, but not before the water had safely put Lynn's flame covered body out. If not for his protective suit, Lynns likely wouldn't have survived the blast. Batman secured Firefly at the front entrance of the zoo and noticed that he was bleeding. He looked himself over and realized that he'd taken a piece of shrapnel from Lynn's fuel tank in the lower right side of his body. It didn't hit a major artery so he wasn't overly concerned about it as he still had other criminals to bring down before the night ended. Once the police arrived on scene, Batman took to the sky once again in search of any other escaped inmate of Arkham. Batman wasted little time in going back to work. He was quickly on the trail of all the others that he needed to find. The approaching storm would make finding clues more difficult if he didn't hurry. Fortunately for him, the inmates had little time to have taken to hiding. It wasn't long before he spotted Harley Quinn snooping around one of Joker's old hideouts. She was obviously looking for some items that they'd left behind from the last time they stayed there. She and Joker were still wearing the Arkham jumpsuits, so they hadn't been there long. Batman's patience was growing thin as he wanted to get all of the inmates locked back up and this would bring him up to half of his goal. He watched for a moment as Harley snooped around before she turned back around and signaled to someone that Batman knew could only be Joker. He leapt off the building using his cape to slow his descent downwards where he landed directly behind the Joker. "We seem to have an uninvited guest Harls." Joker said. "You could have told us you were going to show up Bats, we would have cleaned up first." Joker turned around and threw a punch at Batman, which was deftly dodged and countered with an uppercut into Joker's gut. Harley charged at Batman, leaping up onto his head with her arms and legs. The weight of Harley on his head caused Batman to lose his footing as he fell backwards. Harley quickly jumped up off of him as Joker approached with a lead pipe. "You know Bats." Joker said with a swing of the pipe. "I think…." Another shot from the lead pipe. "You should take a vacation." He swung the pipe like a club and struck Batman several times. Batman tried to block the shots as best he could, but they were doing their damage. He knew that he had to do something quickly, and he used his arms to thrust his legs around in a sweeping motion. This took Joker's legs out from under him, and he landed on his back right next to Batman. Before he knew what hit him, Joker was met with a backhand punch on the bridge of his nose. His head had nowhere to go in order to absorb the blow, and it nearly knocked the clown out. Harley once again jumped onto Batman, and proceeded to slap him repeatedly across the face. Batman managed to eventually grab hold of both Harley's wrists. She reacted to that by head-butting Batman, but that did more damage to herself than it did him. Batman tossed her off of him, and rolled over to stand on his feet. Both Harley and the Joker were still trying to shake the cobwebs when Batman threw a bola at them, tangling the two together. He dragged them over to a pole where he could raised them up off the ground, and leave them dangling for the police to handle. Just as Batman finished pulling the two criminals up and raised his grapple to return to the rooftops, he was interrupting by clapping coming from down the alley. "Very impressive Batman." Came a voice from the same direction. Batman could just make out the profile of a large man approaching him. He squatted down into a defensive stance as the man continued to come closer. "Very impressive indeed. If I'd have let you continue, you would have surely captured all of the criminals that escaped tonight." Batman stood upright and allowed his cape to cover him completely as the masked man came into view. "Who are you?" Batman asked. "I am the man that defeated your precious protégés on this night." He answered. "You may call me Bane."


	18. Chapter 18: Have a Break On Me

Batman stood stoically in front of this new adversary that referred to himself as Bane. He gazed over his opponent, looking Bane over to see what he could decipher. The man was large. He definitely was taller by a few inches and much more stout in build. He wore a black mask that covered most of his face. His eyes stood out in contrast to the mask though. All things aside, Batman had faced larger opponents than the man that stood before him. So how was he able to have taken Dick down and have barely a scratch showing on him? If that was the case, he had to be an exceptionally skilled fighter in the very least. Not even Batman himself could battle with Dick without some form of punishment showing on his body before it was all said and done. Dick had been trained too well to be defeated so soundly. He would have to be extremely cautious against Bane in order to avoid a similar fate. "What do you want Bane?" He asked.

"That is the question isn't it Batman." Bane taunted before he delved further into his answer. "At first I was just honoring a contract, but as time passed, I will admit that the desire to defeat the _mighty Dark Knight_ of Gotham has grown to be just as important. I will be honored to be the one to break you."

Batman ignored the mocking backhanded compliment. "Who ordered you to take me out?" He asked.

"Professional courtesy doesn't permit me to divulge such information Batman." Bane responded. "Even if you are at your end. I'm sure you can appreciate such details being protected from a detective such as yourself."

Batman smirked. "So, it was Ra's al Ghul that offered the contract. What is he up to Bane?"

"You are truly a wise detective Batman." Bane responded. "But Ra's al Ghul's plans are not my concern. Only the money and you are."

"Then you're a fool Bane." Batman fired back. "Ra's al Ghul is a terrorist hell bent on resetting the planet back to before mankind was the dominant species. What good is your money if his plans aren't stopped?"

"I will survive any plans he intends." Bane responded as he moved into a fighting stance. "Enough talk though, your time has ended, and soon once I'm done with you, your body will agree with me."

Bane charged over at Batman, who had been preparing for the inevitable attack the entire time. He'd slipped on his electrically charged brass knuckles and pulled out some smoke pellets. As Bane approached, Batman dropped the pellets in front of himself, and Bane reached there as the smoke had risen up above Batman's chest. He used that smoke to sink away in order to disappear. Bane ran through the smoke swinging his arms wildly as he attempted to make contact with Batman only to find that the Dark Knight had used his cover to leap from the rooftop. Bane looked furiously around the edges of the roof. He couldn't believe that Batman would run from a fight. Especially not after what he'd done to Batman's protégés.

Run Batman did not as he waited for the right moment before springing up and delivering a devastating drop kick to the side of Bane's head. The force of the kick was enough to knock Bane off his feet momentarily. Batman stood pulling out a batarang and flung it directly at Bane. The batarang struck him in the face causing his head to snap back before he gathered himself, and got back to his feet. He wiped his face and realized that the batarang had actually broken his nose. "It's been a long time since I've seen my own blood." He said. "Now the games end."

~~ Washington state ~~

The Justice League had continued their work diverting the lava flow where they could, and evacuating the victims out of the area when it was unavoidable. The sky had become filled with ash falling through as though it were a blizzard. Visibility was down to nothing and had caused all aircraft to be grounded from the Seattle area until further notice. Before that notification occurred, Diana and J'onn had to work together in order to save a few planes that had gotten too close to one another which caused the pilots to lose control. One pair of planes wasn't so lucky though as they actually made contact with each other and were plummeting to the ground. Hawkgirl was forced to break off from evacuating the masses with Flash in order to help J'onn and Diana with those two planes.

Superman was unable to help as he had expanded his search under the Earth's crust for the cause of the tectonic plate shifting. He'd already made his way around the entire plate that Washington State was sitting on, and found nothing either below land or below the ocean floor that would be the cause. He would have been a large help for the planes, but they all agreed that finding the source of these catastrophic events took precedent. Still this appeared to be an endless battle with the Earth as more and more volcanoes were joining in becoming active. Some of them were surprising as they had even been thought to be dormant for quite some time. Even down in Oregon some activity was beginning to develop. After Hawkgirl, Diana, and J'onn were able to get the last two planes down with only minor injuries to report, they finally heard from the Man of Steel. The communicator line was filled with static and garbled and at first they couldn't make sense of what he was saying at all. Finally after multiple attempts, some words could be figured out. "Found…..to …..wish…." Came his voice.

"Come back Superman." John responded. "Did you find the cause?"

"Ye…."

"Do what you have to do." J'onn chimed in. "Things are getting worse here, and we need to try something before its too late."

Everyone looked at the Martian for some clarification. None of them could make out what the Man of Steel was trying to relay to them and they were surprised that J'onn could decipher it. "I could read his thoughts. He has found a device in the middle of Asia." J'onn explained. "He's going to try to remove it to see if that will stem the activity here."

"The sooner the better." Flash stated. "I'm getting tired and ran out of my emergency stash of food to keep charged up."

"Just keep holding up." John responded. "Hopefully what Superman does will help, but if not, we might have to force Batman to come and investigate."

"I'm not too sure how helpful he'll be unless the inmates have all been accounted for." Shayera said. "The man is obsessed with his city, and let's face it. This isn't really a worldwide threat at the moment."

"It couldn't hurt to check in and see if things have improved to where he can come help out." John replied.

Diana nodded in agreement. It had been a few hours since they'd engaged in this effort. Perhaps things had settled in Gotham. She reached up to her communicator and opened a channel. "Diana to Batman."

There were some sounds of a scuffle as he responded. "What…..is it?"

"Things are escalating here and we were looking for a status of your situation with Gotham." Diana said. "We believe Superman has found the device, but we don't know what he is planning to do to alleviate the situation or if it even will. We could really use your help in finding the best possible solution."

There were even more sounds of a fight taking place, and what sounded like a punch hitting the side of a face very close to the microphone smacked through the channel into all their ears. "I'm….ahh…still busy here…can't…."

"Batman?" Diana asked with concern evident in her voice. "All you alright?"

There was silence for a few minutes as they all were waiting for a response. Finally he responded. "Dealing with a situation here still…I'll be in touch when I can….Batman out." They could all hear the heavy breathing in between sentences, but knew better than to question him further as the line was closed by him. Green Lantern shrugged to the others and they all went back to work.

~~ Gotham ~~

Batman was swinging away through the rooftops as he needed to get his bearings set again. Bane had thoroughly beaten him up to this point. The battle started off in Batman's favor as he was able to land many blows while deftly avoiding any counters or random attacks from Bane. It was when he'd taken the attacker off his feet a second time with a leg sweep that something had changed. Bane smacked a button on one of his hands and after that he was incredibly powerful and fast. Absorbing two blasts from Bane at that point caused Batman to alter his means of attacking. He instead pulled out a batarang in each hand and began slicing at Bane any chance he got. After a few minutes, he'd cut up Bane's jacket enough that it revealed tubes running along Bane's body with a green substance inside it. Batman tried to get in close enough, but Bane was able to latch onto one of Batman's arms. He squeezed it tightly and snapped the bone as though it were just a twig. At that point Batman knew he needed to regroup and set a small explosive on Bane's mask before he spun around to avoid the blast. That explosion was enough that Batman's arm was let go, and he quickly surveyed the best route to take and create some much needed distance from himself and Bane.

Batman had swung from one building to the next until he was forced to release his grapple from the force of Bane jumping down on top of him. The altered course caused Batman to crash on the GCPD rooftop. He rolled a ways before popping back up on his feet. Bane had landed almost precisely where Batman had initially hit the rooftop, and was now stalking over towards his prey. Batman knew that one day he would go down in defeat, but he honestly never believed that it would be so soon. His arrogance caused him to believe that he would find a way out of this predicament at some point, just like every other time before. Broken arm or not, he believed he would find a way to defeat Bane in the end. Batman didn't wait for Bane to approach as he rushed forward and performed a jumping flip over top of Bane. While he was in midair, he struck Bane with a side kick that staggered the monster, but didn't cause him to lose his balance. Unfortunately, not losing balance allowed Bane to react quicker, and he once again latched onto Batman, but this time it was around the throat. Batman tried punching Bane over and over in the arm attempting to get free, but Bane ignored the punches and picked Batman up off the rooftop. With few options at his disposal, Batman sent a violent kick to Bane's midsection. That was enough for Bane to lower Batman so that his feet once again were touching the rooftop, but he still didn't release his hold. In fact, after a second or two he spun around one time and almost literally threw Batman through the air until he landed on the Bat signal smashing through it. The combination of the force from the throw and his own body weight was enough to send Batman through the glass as sparks and jolts of electricity flew around him. Some shards of glass stabbed into Batman's back, and protruded through the suit enough that they had actually cut him deeply.

Batman opened his eyes while still laying in the Bat signal only to see a bolt of lightning streak down the sky. He knew that he was in trouble. He had very little information on Bane in order to discover some form of a weakness. Not to mention the fact that he was exhausted and had a broken right arm. In his current condition, he needed to regroup, but Bane was already able to chase him down once. As he began to climb out of the Bat signal, he knew that he had to come up with something and come up with it quickly. While Bane was seemingly taking his time and savoring the joy of having the upper hand, he would eventually lose interest and finish what he had been contracted to.

Bane actually thought he had already been victorious. While Batman was more of a challenge than Nightwing, he'd still not expected the battle to go as swimmingly as it had. But before he became too disappointed, Batman began climbing out of the spotlight, and Bane rubbed his hands together as he eagerly approached his opponent so that the battle could continue. Batman may not have been quite the challenge that he'd expected to this point, but the man's determination to never quit was admirable albeit considerably questionable. "Why do you still fight when you've no hope of winning?" He asked as Batman tumbled out of the spotlight and onto the rooftop below it.

Batman rose up to one knee and responded. "I'll find a way." He then threw another explosive batarang, and this one connected with Bane's knee. That was enough to drop the big man down a peg. Batman wasted no time as he lunged at Bane with a strong roundhouse kick that struck Bane in the side of his head. Batman followed that up with an overhand left and a spinning heel kick. All those attacks struck true onto Bane's head. Batman then went for a front snap kick, but Bane caught his foot before it made contact. He tossed Batman's leg to the side violently enough that it caused Batman's body to spin in a circle before he was met with uppercut. That punch knocked Batman into the air a few feet, and he landed on his back with enough force that it actually knocked the wind out of him. Before he had a chance to get back to his feet, Bane was now standing over top of him looking down.

~~ Batcave ~~

Alfred had just finished treating all of the injuries that Dick had suffered. The poor young man would be in a great deal of pain for quite a few days from the savage beating that he'd received. It was a miracle that he wasn't in worse condition. Barbara and Tim had stayed at his side throughout the majority of the time that Alfred was tending to his wounds. When he was finished and had Dick sedated, they all moved over to the computers so that they could discuss what had happened. "Miss Barbara now would be the time to elaborate on what happened with Master Dick and yourself." Alfred suggested with his hands behind his back and his chin held high. "If there is any information that could aid Master Bruce should he come across those responsible for this, he needs to be informed of it."

Barbara plopped down in the chair as she tried to focus her thoughts on what had happened. She arrived at the clock tower a little early. She hadn't come across much during her last sweep of Bludhaven. She was waiting there watching for Dick's arrival when someone had snuck up behind her and smacked her in the back of her head. She never even felt the presence of her attacker until after he'd already knocked her out cold. She slumped down in the chair after thinking about how careless she must have been to allow someone to sneak up on her like that. "It's my fault Alfred." She said in a very small sounding voice while fighting back a sob. "I….I wasn't careful enough. If I hadn't gotten caught, Dick wouldn't have been forced to keep fighting…."

"No Miss Barbara." Alfred interrupted. "None of this is your fault and you mustn't think such things."

At hearing that from Alfred, Barbara took in a deep shaky breath as she wiped away the tears that were streaming down her face and went back to trying to focus on what had happened. "The next thing I remember was Dick being….being beaten by just one man in a mask." She started to describe. "The man was larger than Bruce, and definitely had a strength advantage over Dick. I've never seen him dominated like that before. Not even when sparring with Bruce. It was almost as though this guy was as strong as…"

An alarm sounded from the computers that interrupted Barbara. The group of three all looked over to the monitors, which flipped to the Batsuit's vital signs. From the information that they could see, Bruce's body was beginning to give out on him. Alfred immediately went into action flipping on the communicator. "Master Bruce!" He called out in an extremely worried tone that Barbara had never heard before from the distinguished Englishman. "Master Bruce, please respond!" Alfred only waited for fifteen seconds before he switched gears, and started typing in commands to perform a task he knew one day might be necessary. "He may not be happy, but I refuse to let my son die if I have any say."

~~ Washington state ~~

Superman landed next to the rest of the Justice League on the coast of the state. His suit was charred from where he'd been, but he was able to breathe a sigh of relief for the moment. "What's the status?" He asked the group.

"It seems what you did slowed things here. The volcanoes are all starting to settle down." John answered.

"But I am concerned about any possible issues from the tectonic plate shift where the device was located. " J'onn added. "It could very well start the creation of many more volcanoes that would otherwise never have come to exist, and may well take weeks for things to settle down in the ocean."

"Agreed J'onn." Superman responded. "When Batman comes available, we'll have him help to identify the likelihood of future trouble as well as to locate the people responsible for this."

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm beat and could sure use some food and caffeine." Flash said while stretching his arms above his head.

Shayera yawned and nodded. "It has been a long night."

"Let's get back to the Javelin and head back to the Watchtower." Superman suggested. "Then we can all get some food and…" He paused, which caused the rest of the League to stop walking towards the Javelin and turn back to the Man of Steel. He raised his hand to his ear as they watched him. "Uh this is Superman. Go ahead." He spoke into the communicator. All the League members watched curiously as Superman's eyes became wide with surprise. "On my way."

"What is it Kal?" Diana asked after Superman lowered his hand and had a concerned look on his face.

"Flash, Diana come with me." Superman ordered. "The rest of you, get back to the Watchtower. J'onn, I need you to ready the medical bay as soon as possible." As soon as Superman finished giving orders, he took off into the air. Flash shrugged his shoulders and took off in the same direction, followed shortly afterwards by Diana. The rest of the group hustled into the Javelin and took off towards the Watchtower.

Diana was struggling to catch up to Superman, so she opened a channel on the communicator and conferenced Flash into it as well. "Where are we heading to Kal?" She asked. "What's wrong?"

"We're going to Gotham City." Superman responded.

"Whoa there Supes." Flash said. "We all know that's a no fly zone for anyone not named Bats."

Diana was becoming slightly concerned herself with the realization that Superman did tend to respect Batman's wishes about staying out of Gotham City. "Kal please, what is it?"

"Its…." Superman started, not knowing what to say. He'd been contacted by Bruce's butler Alfred and was told that Bruce was in grave danger, and was nonresponsive to hails for his status. He was also told that a man had viciously beaten Nightwing on this same night. The pieces all fit together too well. The Justice League had been distracted on the other side of the country while all of Arkham were broken out and trying to escape into Batman's city. Then Nightwing is beaten severely, and now Batman's vitals are becoming critical while at the same time he is not responding to Alfred. It was too much to merely be coincidence. Someone obviously wanted Bruce out of the picture. Realizing he'd not answered Diana's requests for answers, he shook his head and thought of what he could respond with and not give away Batman's biggest secret. "I was contacted and told that Batman is in trouble. He has a program that tracks his vitals from the Batsuit, and they are approaching critical status. And his protégés were made aware of it, but they can't help him. We need to get to him as soon as possible. According to the latitude and longitude given, he should be very close to the GCPD building in downtown Gotham."

Diana gasped thinking about how Batman could be in such a dire situation. He seemed unbeatable when she sparred with him. Until this moment, she had never thought about his mortality as being a hindrance. "Then we need to get to him immediately." Diana said as she charged forward as fast as she was capable of. She sent a silent prayer out to help Batman hold on until they could reach him and save him from falling in battle. She didn't want to lose such an ally after she'd just begun to scratch the surface learning about the mysterious man. What little she had learned was that he was a valiant warrior with a keen mind that would be sorely missed if they didn't reach him in time.

Flash went at his top speed, but with his being hungry and exhausted, his top speed now was slower than he'd normally be able to run. He wouldn't give up though. That's not something he would ever allow to happen. He would be fast enough to reach Batman. He just knew that he had to be.

~~ GCPD Building rooftop ~~

Batman was crawling towards the ledge of the building. Bane had been distracted by the police that had interrupted them trying to see what the ruckus was for a few moments until Bane ripped an AC unit off the rooftop and slammed it into the roof access door, thusly blocking any other policemen from getting to the roof. Batman tried to use that time to create some distance between himself and Bane. His broken arm was already numb of the pain it had been causing, and there were shards of glass still protruding out of his back from the Bat signal spotlight. He'd lost quite a bit of blood and consciousness was also now a fight for him to maintain. As Batman reached for the ledge to help pull himself up, Bane already had made his way over to him and latched onto the back of Batman's neck. "It appears time is growing short for you Batman." Bane taunted. "I will end your misery now." Bane then also grabbed Batman by his leg, and hoisted him high above Bane's head. He held Batman there for a moment before swiftly stepping forward while bringing him down until his back slammed against Bane's upper leg.

Batman could hear a crack and all of his limbs fell limp as Bane shoved him off of his leg. Batman crumpled to the rooftop. He tried to get up, but his limbs weren't obeying the commands to move that his mind was sending them. Bane hovered over him while laughing in victory. He'd defeated Batman and he was enjoying the moment. Batman's vision began to blur as Bane knelt down next to him. "I have broken the Bat." He said taunting his opponent. "My contract obligates that I do not kill you though, so I decided to leave you bound to a wheelchair instead. However, a victory such as this should have some sort of a trophy to display, don't you think?" Bane reached down and grabbed Batman by the pointy ears of the cowl. "Perhaps this will suffice."

Bane began to pull on the cowl until the defense mechanism kicked in and sent a shock to Bane's hands, but it didn't have the effect it had on others that had tried and failed to remove the cowl before. Instead Bane removed his hands for a few seconds, and shook them before latching on again and pulling. Just as the latches on the cowl began to snap, a loud sonic boom could be heard close by. Bane looked up into the lightning filled sky and sneered. "So you called in the cavalry after all. How disappointing."

"Did…didn't…..ca….call….an…any" Batman tried and failed to get out as he finally succumbed to an unconscious state.

Bane dropped Batman's head back onto the rooftop, and ran over to another ledge before leaping off the building. He knew he needed to escape quickly as the sonic boom sound was more than likely caused by Superman slowing down. Bane wasn't prepared to face the Kryptonian and he knew it. He had accomplished his goal and honored the contract. He decided now that he would seek out the remainder of his fee from Ra's al Ghul instead of staying to fight a losing battle. Another time, he would seek out the Man of Steel and take him out as well. Bane slipped into the shadows of the night and slinked away from the GCPD building as quickly as he could.

Superman was the first to spot Batman laying prone on the rooftop of the GCPD building. He held his breath as he used his senses and abilities to check on Batman's vitals. He was relieved to find that Batman was still breathing, albeit labored. Flash arrived as Superman touched down on the rooftop, and less than a minute later, Diana arrived as well. Both she and Flash were shocked at the scene before them. The rooftop appeared to be basically demolished. Diana on instinct knelt down to check on her fallen comrade's vitals. "He's alive Diana." Superman said. "But don't move him. I haven't finished checking on him for injuries."

Superman used his x-ray vision to look over Batman, and there he found that Batman's Humerus bone in his right arm was completely broken, and his Ulna had a hairline fracture in his left arm. It was in scanning between each arm that he gasped in shock.

"What is it Kal?" Diana asked. She'd never heard such a noise coming from Superman before. It was not a noise that she wanted to hear ever again from him just based on the feeling she picked up off of hearing it.

"It's his back." Superman stated quietly yet matter of factly. "Three of his vertebrae are protruding out, and two of them are broken."

"You mean Bats is going to be paralyzed?" Flash asked as the first drops of rain began to fall down.

"I….I'm not sure." Superman answered. "His spinal cord isn't severed, but its definitely bruised at the least."

"We need to get him to a medical facility." Diana stated. "Gotham City has to have a hospital."

They were all shocked to hear coughing from Batman. He hissed in pain. "N…No…..hospi…..tals."

"Batman, we have to get you somewhere quickly. You're losing blood, and your back." Diana tried to argue.

"Ca…..call…the…ca…..cave." Batman instructed. Diana and Flash had no idea what he meant by cave, but Superman seemed to as he reached for his communicator.

"This is Superman." He began. "Yes, I've got him. He needs medical attention now." Superman pinched the bridge of his nose between his fore finger and thumb. "Can you override the protocols?...All right, just give us a moment to strap him to something that will keep him from moving."

Superman flew away quickly without saying where he was heading. "Di…Dia…" Batman tried to get out as he fought through the incredible amount of pain that he was in.

Diana reached down and gently grabbed one of his hands. "Its going to be alright Batman." She said as she tried to console her teammate. She wanted to ask if he could feel her hand, but didn't want to worry him at the same time. Her question however was answered as she felt a slight squeeze from his hand. That brought a smile to her face, and she then believed that he would be alright.

She could see with the ticks of the muscles on his jaw that he was trying to find the words he wanted to say. Eventually it came out in a one word sentence. "Stay."

Her eyes widened in surprise. She never thought that Batman would ask her to do anything of the sort. He was always the one to try and stay alone out of the team. She was shocked for the moment until Superman returned with a long spine board in his hand. He set it down next to Batman and glanced over at Flash and Diana. "As soon as you hear from the Watchtower, I want to know what happened here." He said. "Both of you return to the Watchtower and bring a team down here."

Diana chimed in before Superman continued. "Batman requested that I stay. I think he wants me to go with him."

Superman had a shocked look on his face. When she saw that look she began to question it before Superman continued after a sigh of resignation. "Very well. Flash, you work with GCPD and gather any information you can. We need to know who did this as soon as possible. I think it will have ties to what happened in Washington. Batman always said that there is no such thing as a coincidence, and I think he's right. Especially if you look at everything that's happened tonight."

Flash nodded and took off down the building. He went inside to see what information he could gather before reaching out to the Watchtower to gather a team. Meanwhile as the rain began to pour down on them, Superman and Diana carefully rolled Batman onto his side so that they could slide the board underneath him and strap him down. As soon as he was secured, Superman looked over at Diana again, only with a confused look this time. "Are you sure about this Diana?" He asked.

"If its what my teammate wants in such a dire state, then I can think of no other place I should be." She answered.

Superman then reached for his communicator. "Superman and two more, ready for transport." And within seconds all three of them disappeared in a flash of light.


	19. Chapter 19: To the Batcave

Diana was surprised to find that her surroundings were actually not the Watchtower, but a large cave. She quickly realized that she was in the storied Batcave for the second time. Under different circumstances, she would have been more eager to continue looking around at all the sights as she'd begun during her first visit, but with a seriously injured teammate, her focus remained on helping Batman in any way that she could. She and Superman carefully carried Batman off of a transporter pad that looked identical to the one on the Watchtower. Once down the steps, they were met by a woman in a Batsuit and a young man in the Robin suit. Diana quickly deduced that she was meeting Batgirl and Robin. She was slightly confused for a moment as all of her previous research on the Dark Knight had revealed Robin to be much older than the young man before her. He couldn't have been more than thirteen years old. Her mind didn't have much time to go over the two individuals there as Batgirl spoke to the two Justice League members. "We need to get him to the medical area. Follow me." Diana and Superman followed behind Batgirl as she walked over to a staircase which brought them up a level where another man could be seen lying on a medical table and apparently unconscious. Batgirl pointed them over to another table next to this young man on the table. He was still masked, preventing any unwanted guests to have free reign as to their secret identities. Batgirl pointed to another table. "Put him on that medical table. The doctor should be here any minute." She said before she began searching over Batman's injuries.

Superman reached for her wrists before she disturbed Batman in his current condition. "Be careful Batgirl." He said. "I used my x-ray vision and discovered some significant injuries to his spine."

Batgirl backed away quickly as she didn't want to do anything that could cause more issues. Instead she went over to a vault and came back with chilled IV bags in hand. "We need to keep him as cool as possible." She explained. "There's evidence with professional athletes that spinal injuries can be lessened if you keep the swelling down as much as possible. We need to remove one of Batman's gauntlets so I can insert the IV."

Diana dug her fingers into the gauntlet on one of Batman's hands and began to pull away at it slowly at first. She was quick to realize that Batman had designed the suit to hinder a Meta from gaining access, so she increased the amount of effort that she was applying, and soon the locks on the gauntlet began to snap. After a few breaking noises, the gauntlet had been removed successfully and tossed aside. Batgirl wasted little time inserting the IV into Batman's vein and beginning the flow of the chilled liquids into Batman's system.

Diana watched as Batgirl made her way over to a computer and accessed Batman's vitals. She was keeping an eye on his body temperature as it slowly dropped. "I'm not familiar with such a treatment." She said to Batgirl. "What can you tell us about it?"

"It's still experimental, but Batman believes it can help in spinal injury cases." She explained. "It's called cold therapy or moderate hypothermia. We're basically chilling him from the inside out by infusing cold fluids into Batman's veins with the hope that any further damage from swelling can be deterred until an actual doctor can try to help him." Batgirl took her eyes off the monitors and looked over at Tim. "Robin." She said to get his attention. "See if you can find out how long it will be before Dr. Tompkins arrives."

Tim looked around for a moment before realization donned on him what she was actually trying to relay to him. He then began to run up the stairs to the entrance, but just as he was about to run out of sight, he was stopped in his tracks by two fast approaching elderly people, one Alfred Pennyworth who was escorting Dr. Leslie Tompkins. By the time Tim reached for Alfred to push him back up the stairs, he was interrupted by the voice of recognition down in the cave. "Alfred?" Diana asked as soon as she spotted him. Her mind began to race as all the facts started to fall into place for her. However, as quickly as her mind was putting the pieces together, it was not prepared to stop her from asking the obvious questions. "What are you doing here?"

Alfred immediately froze upon hearing Diana's voice. He looked at her confused face wondering what he could say. He wasn't even aware that she was in the Batcave while he'd been waiting at the Manor doors for Leslie to arrive. "Um, well, Miss Diana…" He started as his mind raced for the appropriate response. If Diana's facial expression was any indication, she was rather furious at the secret being kept from her. "I do apologize for the secrecy Miss Diana, and I give you my word that an explanation will be provided. However, that will need to wait until we've tended to Master Bruce's condition I'm afraid."

Hearing his name shouldn't have made it seem more real, but even though she'd already figured out Batman's identity, the confirmation only served to floor her. He'd been the same man the whole time. Even though he seemed so different while in the cape and cowl versus in a business suit. She didn't realize that she was actually standing in the way of Dr. Tompkins examining Batman, or Bruce's condition. Superman noticed the look of shock still on Diana's face and pulled her gently out of the way as he informed the doctor of his own findings with the hope that what he shared would help to expedite the treatment and hopeful recovery.

Batgirl went over to Nightwing and kept a close eye on him. She still felt guilty about him being put in such a precarious position, and she wanted to be by his side when he woke up. She cared for Dick very much, and knew that if the roles were reversed, she would want Dick to be the first face she saw upon waking up. Tim joined her in looking over Nightwing as he settled on the other side of the medical bed. He watched from afar as Dr. Leslie worked on his primary mentor. With no one in the cave in the shadows any longer about Batman's secret identity, she'd worked with Alfred on carefully removing Bruce from the Batsuit. Diana stood as still as a statue until she heard the thud of a piece of the suit falling to the ground. Diana finally looked over to see the chiseled muscular form of Bruce, or Batman. She couldn't decide how she should think of him anymore. Was he her friend, or her teammate? She only knew that she needed some time to think things through. "I'm going to help Flash." She said to Superman. "I'll return shortly."

Diana started to fly off in the cave searching for an exit before Superman came up swiftly behind her. "Wait, Diana." He said. Which caused her to stop and turn to face him. "I just needed to make sure you are aware, since you now know Bruce's secret, you can't tell anyone about it."

Diana glowered at Superman for a moment in a manner that would have rivaled a Batglare. She poked Superman in the chest between each word that leaked out through her clenched teeth. "Of…the….three…of..us…I'm…the…only…one…that….had…nothing….to hide."

"Let me explain." Superman tried.

"No Kal." Diana interrupted. She was furious at this point. Straightening her arm and pointing her finger over in the direction of the medical area she continued. "That man has been taking advantage of my feelings for weeks. I thought him a friend as Bruce Wayne, and a teammate as Batman. Now I think of him as a pathetic man, just as mother described all of you."

"It's not like that Di…" Superman tried before she interrupted him again.

"And you Kal." She seethed. "You knew all this time and didn't think I had the right to know? You are just as guilty as he is." Superman lowered his head in guilt from the accusation. "How can I trust either of you now?" She asked before turning and taking flight towards what she hoped was an exit.

Dr. Leslie had confirmed Superman's findings by this point and called him back over to the medical area. She had decided to use Superman's powers to her advantage, and she instructed him how to gently force the three protruding vertebrae back into their correct position. Using his x-ray vision, he was careful to make certain that he didn't cause further damage to the spinal cord. The two broken vertebrae served as the greatest challenge in moving and keeping intact. One was in pieces as it were. Had Bruce been conscious at this point, he'd be in an immense amount of pain. Most likely an unbearable amount of pain. When he was finished, Leslie took back over so that she could operate and insert something to help stabilize the injured vertebrae and help keep them intact until they'd had the appropriate amount of time to heal.

~~ Gotham sky ~~

Diana hadn't flown back to the police station to help Flash as she'd said she would. At the moment that was the last thing on her mind. She flew aimlessly for a time lost in her own thoughts and anger. She was hurt that Bruce had felt that she wasn't trustworthy of such a secret. Why had he attempted to befriend her? Was she honestly just some naive girl that he hoped to take advantage of with his kindness to sucker her in? He'd been so friendly and never attempted to try anything that she hadn't wanted to do. How could he be this way, and what did he have to gain from such actions? She didn't know if she wanted to pummel him or just kill him outright for toying with her emotions.

Diana then thought about what he'd done as Bruce around her. How he'd approached J'onn without fear. Though now that she thought about it, the more she began to believe that the telepathic Martian had most likely used his powers to figure out who the man behind the cape and cowl was. Was he guilty as well as Kal? Perhaps not. Perhaps J'onn wanted to be respectful of two colleagues and their needs. If that were the case then perhaps Kal also felt obligated from duty to hold Bruce's secret as well. But she and Kal were so much closer than anyone had known them to be. While they hadn't shared more than a few steam filled kisses, their relationship should have made them closer than other League members. That was why it hurt and angered her more to think of Kal keeping such a secret from her over J'onn.

She landed on the rooftop of Wayne tower. It made sense to her why Batman had come to this rooftop now. He worked there during the day as well. Diana tried to quell the anger towards that man, but she couldn't bring herself to do so. She wanted answers. She needed answers, and by the Gods she would get the answers. She stood proudly on the rooftop for a few more moments as she contemplated her next course of action. Alfred would likely know the most, and he did tell her that he would explain once Bruce's injuries were attended to. She would start there, and perhaps the rest of the Batclan before setting her sights on Kal. Once she was finished with him, she would wait for Bruce to wake up. She just couldn't be certain that she wouldn't slap him silly as soon as she looked into his eyes or just kill him outright. He certainly deserved a beating in the least as soon as he healed enough for trying to play her for a fool. Before she headed back to the Batcave, she'd decided to make just one more stop and took flight in that direction.

Commissioner Gordon was the last remaining officer on top of the police headquarters building. He was next to the destroyed Bat signal. He ran his hand around the circular area that used to hold the glass in place. It looked like a war zone on the rooftop. Everything was in shambles from the battle between Batman and this new criminal. Gordon hadn't been at the building when the fight had taken place, but he'd heard from the few officers that had witnessed some of the fight. It was a fight that the mighty Dark Knight was losing according to the ones that witnessed it. The Flash had still been there when Gordon arrived onsite, but he had kept his answers vague and short. His answers may not have given many details, but his body language was speaking volumes to Jim. Flash was obviously in a state of disbelief, but he also carried himself with slumped shoulders. Something that Jim hadn't noticed from the interviews and footage he'd seen of the Flash on television. This all lead him to believe that Batman was seriously injured or perhaps worse. He shuddered at the thought of a Gotham City without its Batman there to protect it. Batman had done so much to help clean up this city that was so lost inside its own darkness. If Batman were to be no more, it would only be a matter of time before the city collapsed on itself into a pit of despair. Jim pulled out a pack of cigarettes that he'd not touched in weeks. But this night had been incredibly taxing on the commissioner. He shedded the cellophane and stuck a cigarette in between his lips as he searched his pockets for his lighter. "Heaven help us." He uttered quietly to himself.

"Perhaps I can offer some assistance." Gordon heard a heavenly voice state from above him. He ceased searching for a lighter as he looked up to see Wonder Woman landing before him.

"Hello Wonder Woman." Gordon responded as he quickly removed the cigarette from his lips and stowed it away behind one of his ears. "Is there something that the Flash missed?"

Diana gave Gordon a puzzled look for a moment until she recalled that Flash had been left behind to gather intel about what had happened. "No Commissioner." She answered. "I didn't come on behalf of the League's investigation, and in my experience, Flash is typically quite thorough in matters such as this."

"Oh." Jim responded. "Well then perhaps you could give me an update on Batman's condition. Is he going to be alright?"

Diana wasn't sure how to respond. She didn't want to give anything away as she still recalled Kal telling her that Batman's secret identity had to remain a secret. Although she didn't understand why, she knew from the seriousness of Kal's tone that it would be wrong of her to put Batman in a bad position, even though she was still furious with him. She took a deep breath to settle herself and hide any emotion from her voice before she answered. "Batman is receiving treatment for his injuries as we speak. I'm not a medical expert so I would like to refrain from going into details."

The commissioner sighed and turned away from Diana. "I…I just need to know if he's going to be alright." Jim said. "We need Batman here to protect the city."

"In his absence, I'm sure the League could step in until Batman is able to return." Diana offered.

Jim chuckled slightly at Diana's response. "No, Wonder Woman." He said. "Gotham needs Batman. Someone like you or even Superman wouldn't survive in a city like Gotham."

Diana was deeply offended by that response. She glowered at the commissioner while crossing her arms over her chest. "What could possibly lead you to believe that Superman or I wouldn't be up to the task of protecting this city from the evils it has to offer? Kal and I are powerful enough to handle any of Gotham's criminals."

Jim noticed the anger that was growing inside Diana. He held up his hands in surrender, but still moved forward with an explanation. "Please don't be offended Wonder Woman. I meant no disrespect to you, but you have to understand something about this city." He waited for a moment until Diana seemed to relax her posture a little before he took a deep breath and continued. "You see, in my time here, I've seen this city take the best and brightest men and women be taken, and be chewed up and spit out. They've all fallen from the darkness that is inside this city. Any good that comes from them seems to be snuffed out by more bad until they either give up or fall into that darkness. I might have even fallen in if not for Batman."

Diana's stance went from hardened to inquisitive as she listened to the commissioner explain what he'd meant. "Please go on." She prompted him.

"Yes, well what I was trying to say is that even though I'm sure that you or Superman would do some good. This city seems to have a power to turn that goodness against those that bring it back to them with even more darkness and evil. Batman is different than someone like a Harvey Dent or even a Superman or Wonder Woman." Jim continued to explain. "You see, I believe that Batman was born of this city. He came out from its darkness and used that power against the city. He uses fear to keep the criminals at bay, and he uses his mind to always remain two steps in front of the criminals here. Sure there are the Jokers that Gotham has produced against Batman, but he never wavers in his fight. I've never seen him give up or let Gotham bring him down. And we've had Batman here to keep up the vigil working alongside the police force. Even the crooked cops have gone away for the most part because they knew it was only a matter of time before Batman would find them. Gotham needs Batman. It's tried other good people like Harvey Dent and turned them into the evil that they fought to remove. Batman has never allowed that to happen to him."

Diana saw her chance to gain more information and decided to take it. "What about other citizens?" She asked. "What about someone like Bruce Wayne? I've gotten to know him and he doesn't seem to be letting this city corrupt him."

"Bruce?" Jim asked in surprise. "Bruce….well he is a slightly different story. You see, years ago, when I'd first started on the force. Bruce was involved in a hideous crime. His parents were shot right in front of him by some common thug. I believe that Bruce was scarred that day, and those scars have sort of hardened him to where he isn't so much affected in any way, good or bad. Don't get me wrong, Bruce Wayne has done a lot of good for the city, but how much is honestly from him or from a PR firm within Wayne Enterprises is unknown to anyone that isn't very close to him. The only true thing we know of Bruce is he is one of the most generous when it comes to charities for Gotham City. Aside from that, what you've read in the tabloids should describe the kind of man that he's grown up to become."

Diana took in all of Gordon's information, and had to hold back from the smirk that wanted to appear on her face. If only the commissioner knew that Bruce Wayne was not just a charitable rich kid born into wealth, but until tonight he was also moonlighting as Gotham's dark vigilante. Gordon interrupted her thoughts with his next words. "If you would Wonder Woman, please send Batman the city's prayers and best wishes for a quick recovery. Without him, this city will most likely crumble back into chaos."

Diana nodded at the commissioner before saying good night and taking off in flight. Her conversation with Gordon had done much to alleviate the immense anger. Jim's words had been enough to remind her that while Bruce had hidden things from her and taken advantage of that, deep down he was still an admirable hero, and especially so for his city. She was now ready to head back to the Batcave and confront Kal and Alfred before settling on Bruce for the rest of the answers that she still wanted to understand.

~~ Batcave ~~

Superman was working with Batgirl to relay the files that Flash had retrieved from the police department as well as his report on the happenings from on top of the GCPD roof. It was challenging to work past all the layers of protection, but after some searching, Batgirl found what she knew her mentor would have to keep tabs on the Watchtower and its inhabitants. Protected and hidden from anyone without a vast array of knowledge with computers and coding, there was a hidden program that she used to pull the data from the Watchtower database. They reviewed all of the information, which fortunately as well as unfortunately showed some surveillance footage from the rooftop. Batgirl didn't want to watch as Batman was slowly beaten down by the brutish masked man. She remained there however and ran the super computer recognition program based off of the size of the man, grasping at straws to find out more about him. They did notice that parts of the mask were missing, which revealed some of the man's face, but it was covered in blood and misshapen from what they each assumed was Bruce's handiwork.

Alfred and Leslie watched over Bruce together as he was resting. They'd diagnosed and treated Bruce's many wounds including having to reset his broken arm. They also realized that he had suffered a serious concussion at some point during the fight with the masked man. Batgirl had summed that up to the man slamming Bruce's head into and partially through a wall. They were now forced to play the waiting game to see how Bruce responded once he woke up. They could only hope and pray that he would be alright eventually.

Dick had come to soon after Diana had left the cave, and it only took a few seconds before he realized that Bruce was also injured, and appeared to be in a more serious condition that Dick was himself. Dick had received quite a beating from the masked man, and he was absolutely disgusted from having watched the security footage of Bruce falling to the same man. If only he'd been more prepared, he could've saved Barbara from being captured and the three of them could have taken down this masked man together. Instead now they were all forced to wait to see what condition Bruce's spinal cord is in and how much damage or loss of motor skills Bruce would suffer from the injury. Once Dick had finished going through his recollections of what had happened that night, he started to wobble as he became lightheaded and dizzy. With that being noticed, Alfred ordered the others to assist Dick in getting up to the Manor and into a guest bedroom so that he could continue to rest and recover. It would be a while before the young man would be fit enough to continue with the mission.

Batgirl and Superman were sitting quietly in front of the computer as they went over ideas and theories on how about to track down this man. Superman knew however that this event just had to be tied to the tectonic plate shifting and brought that up to Batgirl's attention. She quickly went to work on it, hoping that she would be able to shed some light on the subject when they were all caught off guard from Wonder Woman's return to the Batcave. Barbara instructed Tim to go up to the Manor and check on Dick before he himself was to get to bed. The shock on everyone's faces from Diana's return slowly went away as she walked towards the English gentleman, and laid a hand on one of his shoulders. "Bruce's condition seems to have stabilized Alfred." She said. "Now I need to speak with you. I have questions that need answers and you gave me your word I would have them."

Alfred released Leslie's hand as he stood and turned towards Wonder Woman. "Indeed miss, I did give my word. Please follow me."


	20. Chapter 20: Dealing with Deception

"You too, Kal." Diana said as she followed Alfred towards the stairs that would lead out of the Batcave.

Superman looked over to Batgirl for a moment, but she didn't offer any form of escape for the Man of Steel to use. She just went back into her research over the man in the mask. Superman slumped his shoulders in defeat and turned to follow Alfred as he led Diana out of the cave. Diana waited and watched as Alfred entered the code to open the main entrance to the cave from the inside. The door slid open slowly and the elderly man walked through. When Diana followed, she quickly realized that they were walking out into the library, and that the door was actually hidden behind the grandfather clock that she had noticed one of the times when she was waiting for Bruce. Alfred continued to walk through the library, and out into the hallway. Diana began to wonder where the butler was taking her until he reached the kitchen area and pulled out a tea pot before filling it with water and setting it on the stove. She took a seat at the counter as she watched and waited while Alfred prepared some tea. He apparently was anticipating this was going to be a long conversation from the way he was preparing. Kal eventually walked into the room, and sat down in a chair next to Diana. She refused to look at him though and continued to stare at Alfred. The room was silent for some time until the tea pot began to whistle. It was then that Diana decided that she too would break the silence. "Why?" She asked turning to look into Superman's eyes. "Why did you hide this from me?"

"Its, its complicated Diana." Superman tried to explain. The disapproving look she was giving him told him that his response wasn't good enough. He sighed before continuing. "With Batman, he's very protective of his identity. More so than any other hero I've come across. Had he known at the time that I had x-ray vision, I'd never have known his identity either. In fact, because of me, now his cowl is lined with a layer of lead. I was only trying to respect his wishes, just as he does mine with my identity. He never calls me Clark or Kent unless it's secure and the people that are with us already know the secret."

"But you've shared your secret identity with me, with members of the League." Diana responded. "Hiding such things from teammates is cowardly."

"I think you are mistaken Miss Diana." Alfred said as he placed a cup of tea before her. "Master Bruce may be many things, but one of them is not cowardly."

Diana's eyes blazed with some anger that was growing again. "Then at the very least he is manipulative with others." She fired back. "Especially with me and my feelings. Surely he knew that I would find out eventually about his secret. Why did he reach out to me as Bruce Wayne and befriend me, only to hide the fact that he already knew me, and knew me well."

"If I may miss, I believe he was trying to get to know you." Alfred explained. "It is my belief that he had a desire to know who Wonder Woman really was, and that was something he simply couldn't accomplish as Batman. I assure you that he didn't intend to cause you harm."

"He betrayed my trust." Diana stated. "How could he have believed that he was doing anything to prove otherwise?"

"That my dear is a question which only Master Bruce can answer." Alfred answered.

"Hiding such information is hardly an act of friendship." Diana fired back again. "I don't know what his end goals were, but friendship couldn't have been what it was."

Alfred stiffened for a moment as he pondered how much he should share. "I believe if you look at it from Master Bruce's point of view, then perhaps you would see things differently."

"Then explain it to me Alfred." Diana requested as much as ordered. "I have a right to know after him taking advantage of my feelings of friendship towards him."

Alfred gave Superman a knowing look, and the Man of Steel got up and walked out of the room. Alfred waited for a few moments before reaching out and taking Diana by the hand. He led her back to the library and waited until the secret passage to the cave was shut behind Superman before he walked over in front of the portrait of Thomas and Martha Wayne. He looked up at it for a few moments, almost asking the two people from the painting how best to answer Diana's questions without saying something that would upset Bruce. He knew that after the initial meeting with Diana that Bruce had more than investigative feelings towards the Amazon princess. Alfred could plainly see it in the way that Bruce acted around Diana. Finally he turned towards Diana and took a deep breath. "I'm sure you're aware Miss Diana that Master Bruce is without any extra physical powers?" Diana's nod gave him all the confirmation he needed to continue. "A man in his position must be conscious of the possible consequences of one's actions. Master Bruce has worn some form of the cape and cowl ever since he'd chosen to walk this path. Not only does the mask protect his facial features, but it also offers protection for those he cares about. It offers resistance to any reprisals brought about by knowing Batman, and wishing to bring him down through his loved ones. I believe that Master Bruce cares for you and hid the truth from you as an effort to protect you as well, even though you surely don't need such a thing. It may seem silly to you, but when Master Bruce wishes to protect someone, he will do anything he can to succeed in that endeavor."

"That seems completely unnecessary." Diana stated before walking back into the kitchen and setting her now empty tea cup down and walking out of the kitchen. Alfred sighed as he followed before taking the tea cup and placed it into the dishwasher. He hoped that his descriptions would offer enough information so that Diana would calm enough to give Bruce a chance to perhaps apologize, or at least give his own reasoning in a manner that Diana would find acceptable. Alfred had almost given up on his charge finding happiness until he saw the change in Bruce's body language, even as subtle as it was, he'd seen the lifted weight carried in his surrogate son's steps after spending time with Diana. Alfred knew that she was special, and someone as special as her had the best chance of breaking through the protective walls that Bruce had built around his heart. All the other women that had attempted to reach Bruce's heart had one glaring thing missing. They weren't able to deal with both personas that Bruce took on. They were either wanting the Bat like Selina did, or they were only interested in Bruce Wayne and wanted nothing to do with the Bat side. Talia al Ghul had come closest to accepting both sides, in fact she did accept them both, but she had a poor family tree situation. She was too loyal to her father, and simply wouldn't go against that man's wishes, even if it would be in her best interest to do so. Perhaps this time with Diana would be different. He only hoped that this bridge hadn't already been burnt before anything had come of it at all.

After walking out of the kitchen, Diana didn't want to return to the cave yet so she walked around the Manor for a while looking at all the decorations. When she reached the study, she could see the far wall had a balcony door that was calling for her to step outside. There was still lightning streaking through the night sky as she opened the doors and stepped out onto the balcony. There was a chilling breeze blowing which whipped her hair back and forth as it changed directions, seemingly not being able to decide where it wanted to blow the storm clouds that were circulating in the night sky. The tumultuous weather conditions matched up well with how Diana felt inside. She was still angry with Bruce over his deception. She wouldn't have had an issue with him hiding his secret identity, as he was certainly not the only hero that had held such a standard, but the fact that he'd sought her out as Bruce Wayne was what still troubled her. Bruce was truly her first and for the moment the only friend that she had which was outside the League. And now to find out that he was actually a part of the League the whole time angered her. She didn't like being manipulated like that, and such a manipulation made her wonder what selfish desires that mortal man had for her. It appeared that he was proving her mother's opinion of men to still be accurate.

Rain drops began to fall slowly as Diana looked out to the city lights that illuminated the sky above Gotham City. She wondered for a moment if Bruce spent much time on this balcony just looking out over his city. As Batman he was always so serious and never seemed to rest. She could see why he would stand out here before heading out to protect the civilians within Gotham. It was quite the lovely view, even with the increasing rainfall that was quickly becoming a downpour. She stood out in the rain for a few more moments before finally retreating back indoors. She took a few calming breaths before heading back out and down to the library. She found that Alfred was there waiting for her to head back down to the cave. He gave her the slightest of smiles as she approached, as he was glad that Diana had chosen to stay. She watched as Alfred moved the clock arms to a specific time before pulling down on a small lever off to the left that was reasonably well hidden from view. The grandfather clock slid off to the left, and a steel door behind it repeated that movement before he gestured for her to enter the doorway ahead of him.

Diana felt a chill from the cave air hitting her still rain soaked skin. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she could see that Batgirl was still working feverishly at the super computer while Superman was discussing something with Dr. Tompkins off to the side from where Bruce remained. Diana walked back over to Bruce and looked him over with a less angered mind. She didn't particularly like seeing him in this fashion. His arms and legs were strapped to the table, and she could tell that he was heavily bandaged on his backside. There were bruises everywhere on his body and face. The man looked like he'd been through a war by himself. Then Diana noticed some old scars on his body and began to look him over a little more closely and curiously. She could make out numerous scars all over from stab wounds, gun shots, animal bites, and other jagged scars that were likely from shrapnel. She began to wonder just how much pain this one man had taken over the years, and why he felt compelled to put himself through so much. She noticed how well sculpted his body was. There didn't appear to be an ounce of fat on him. He'd obviously worked very hard to maintain such a wonderful physique. She reached her hand out and traced a jagged scar that started on one shoulder and ran down to his chest when Alfred approached her from behind. "Ah yes, that was a particularly nasty cut that Master Bruce endured." Alfred said as he noticed the scar that Diana was tracing.

"How did he get it?" Diana asked.

"An arsonist had been setting fires to apartment complexes, and Master Bruce went in to save a family that had become trapped inside. A beam struck him on the shoulder and pinned him underneath it. He was unable to lift it off from the weight, but was able to slide it off of him. He had only saved the children by that time, and the mother was still inside. Master Bruce believed the cut was worth the risk of saving the children's mother from a dire situation."

"Why does he put himself through this Alfred?" Diana asked again as she turned to the butler standing next to her. "He's just a normal man."

Alfred turned and gave Diana a glance that seemed to be disappointed. "Master Bruce may be many things Miss Diana, but normal is not a word that I believe would come to mind." Alfred responded. "Yes, Master Bruce doesn't have any form of super powers, but he has many attributes that other heroes simply do not possess."

"Such as?" Diana coaxed.

"Such as his indomitable will." Alfred answered. "I've never seen any man, woman, or child that possesses a will to match Master Bruce's, super powered Meta human or not. I wouldn't be surprised if we will have to keep him chained to a bed in order to prevent Master Bruce from heading out in search of the man responsible for his current condition, simply because of what that man did to his son."

"Nightwing?" Diana asked. Alfred merely nodded his head in response. "Bruce fought the same man that beat Nightwing so severely?"

"Never underestimate the abilities of one whose family are harmed." Alfred explained. "Especially someone such as Master Bruce."

Diana turned her gaze back onto the man resting in front of her and began to think back to what she believed she knew about the man before this latest discovery. She searched her memories trying to find comparisons between Bruce as the man, and Bruce as Batman. There were some similarities to be found even though the man did make an effort of hiding common ground between the two personas from public eye. It now made sense to her as to why the tabloids all thought Bruce to be a playboy. The Batman seemed to hold no interest in romance whatsoever. The more that she thought things through, the more her anger towards him lessened. She was now willing to listen to Bruce explain what he planned to do with attempting to gain her friendship. She stopped tracing scars of Bruce's chest and walked around the medical bed to a chair where she took a seat next to him. She would respect his wishes and stay there with him until he woke up.

After a couple hours, Dr. Leslie retreated up to the Manor for some much needed rest. She wouldn't go any farther than that away from Bruce though as she wanted to check on him as soon as he was awake so that she would know the extent of his injuries. Her only order for those that remained was to make certain that the cold therapy was continued. She didn't want any swelling to cause further harm if it was avoidable. Batgirl was the next to give in to the need for slumber as she worked and worked until she had nothing left to give. When her head dropped to the keyboard for the third time, she'd finally given in and headed up to check on Nightwing before calling it a night. Superman left to return to Metropolis as he had to head in to the Daily Planet so that he could keep a better eye on the news releases about Batman's condition. Even though the man was thought to be a myth, still, stories about him falling would run like wildfire if anything got loose. That left Alfred and Diana with Bruce. Alfred held the same concerned face as he watched over Bruce. Diana took in the look on Alfred's face and quickly realized that he wasn't just Bruce's butler, but more of a concerned parent. Diana meanwhile wanted to keep to Bruce's wish, so she fought off her tired state by occasionally standing and walking around the Batcave. She reviewed a different trophy from Batman's many battles, and found the training area as well as the locker area which housed older versions of the Batsuit. She was amazed by the amount of improvements that Bruce had made as he progressed through time with added technology and safety equipment. The first iteration of the Batsuit was not much more than a nomex and Kevlar weave with reinforced Kevlar plating underneath. His latest version seemed much more like armor on the outside, and looked a little more sleek in design. Even the cowl seemed to have been upgraded throughout time.

When Diana finished looking through the Batsuit history she returned to her seat next to Bruce. Her return was enough to cause Alfred to jump as he was also beginning to lose his fight with exhaustion. "I can watch him for a while Alfred if you'd like to get some rest." Diana offered.

Alfred stood to work out some of the kinks his body needed worked out from sitting in an uncomfortable position for so long. "I appreciate the offer Miss Diana, but perhaps I'll just return to the Manor in order to brew some coffee." He responded. "Would you care for a cup Miss?"

"That sounds wonderful Alfred, thank you." Diana answered. She watched as Alfred maintained his perfect posture while exiting the cave before she once again turned to look at Bruce. She leaned forward slightly, resting her elbows on her knees as she watched the man's chest rise and fall. She wondered for a moment how long it would be before Bruce came to, and what condition he would be in when he did wake. Wanting to focus her mind elsewhere, she again looked around the cave, and thought about going to the training area for a workout once Alfred returned with some caffeine. Her thoughts were interrupted though from a soft moan that came from the man laying before her. Diana stood immediately and moved closer to where she was looking directly at his face. She wanted to be prepared to move in case he was able to move his limbs and tried to get up, which could potentially make things much worse for him. She watched as Bruce's eyelids began to flutter and shake as though they were struggling to open up. Another soft moan escaped his mouth, and Diana wanted to make sure that he was calm, but she wasn't sure if she should just let him come to naturally or try to coax him into opening his eyes. Another moan caused her to make her choice. "It's alright Bruce." She said softly. "You're safe."

Bruce finally began to open his eyes as he looked over at the face just above him. His vision was blurry and he couldn't make out who it was standing before him, but he heard her voice as she spoke to him. It was a sweet voice that he knew right away, and though he wouldn't admit it, a voice that he enjoyed hearing first over anyone else's. Bruce opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. He blinked his eyes a few times as he tried to focus his vision on her face and clear the blurriness. Diana saw all of this happening and she took her right hand to cup it around Bruce's left cheek. "Stay still Bruce." She said. "You are home and safe. No one here will harm you."

Bruce went to reach his left hand up to place it on Diana's right hand that still was holding Bruce's cheek. When his hand never reached that destination, he quickly snapped wide awake. "What…What's going on?" He asked worriedly.

"You were beaten in battle and received some serious injuries Bruce." Diana answered.

"Why can't I…" He began to ask when he suddenly stopped. Then it registered. He'd been involved in a battle, and Diana just called him Bruce. In fact, her hand was touching higher on his face than it should have been able to if the cowl was still on his face. "You know?" He asked the silly question that required no answer because the answer was obvious.

"Yes Bruce, I know." She answered anyways. "I know that you're Batman."

"I didn't mean for you to find out like this." Bruce said as he closed his eyes tightly. He tried to move his legs and arms, but he could tell that nothing was happening. He sighed in frustration before opening them back up to look back into Diana's face. He didn't want to tell her what he realized.

"There will be a time to discuss that later." Diana said. "Right now we need to know about the man that did this to you."

Bruce closed his eyes trying to think. As things came back to him, he shared them with her. "It….it was the same man that attacked Nightwing." He started. After a couple of deep breaths his eyes shot open. "His name is Bane. He was hired by Ra's al Ghul to keep me out of the way. Ra's has to have something planned."

"Perhaps it was this Ra's al Ghul that discovered a means of forcing tectonic plates to move. We think that was the cause of all the volcanic activity." Diana suggested.

"If you stopped it in one night, then that can't be the sum of his plans." Bruce stated as an expression of anger began to form on his face. "If he wanted me out of the way for a long period of time, then he has to have something more up his sleeve. I'll need to…." Bruce trailed off and went silent.

"You'll need to what?" Diana asked. She could see the facial expression change from anger to an almost resignation.

"The League will need to investigate further." Bruce said quietly. "I can't help with this anymore."

"Why Bruce?" Diana asked. "You're still an important piece of the League."

"Because…." Bruce started before once again closing his eyes and taking some deep breaths.

"Because why Bruce?" Diana asked again.

"Because I can't feel my arms and legs!" Bruce shouted. "I'm paralyzed Diana. I'm no good for the League or Gotham anymore."

"Bruce, you don't know if this is permanent." Diana said as she tried to calm him down. "Kal said that your spinal cord wasn't severed so there's still hope that you can recover from this."

"I just…..need some time Diana." Bruce choked out. "Please. I need some time to think."

Diana wasn't sure what to say. She knew that Bruce was upset, but she didn't want to leave him like that. "I'll be just outside for a few minutes." She said as she chose to give him some space for a few minutes. He was lucid and aware of his situation, and since he couldn't use his arms and legs, there was no need to worry much about causing further harm to himself by trying to stand on his own. She walked slowly up the stairs and couldn't help but hear him as he sobbed slightly before choking out in a very quiet voice. "I tried. I'm sorry." Diana paused at hearing that, wondering who he was apologizing to before she entered the same codes that she'd seen Alfred enter earlier when he showed her up to the Manor before. She took a deep breath and wiped away the single tear that built up and managed to escape her eyes before stepping through the door to give Bruce his time that he'd asked for.


	21. Chapter 21: Dealing With It

When the grandfather clock slid back into place, hiding the entrance to the cave Diana leaned her shoulders and head up against it. She was almost looking to the ceiling for answers as to what she should be thinking or feeling. She'd been deceived by someone that she thought of as a friend and wanted to be angry with him, but seeing Bruce in his current condition and the sound of despair and resignation in his voice made being angry not possible. Instead she found herself wanting to reach out and comfort Bruce in any way that she could. As Batman, he was the most persistent and unwavering figure she'd met outside of her homeland of Themyscria. Batman's will alone would rival that of her gods, but in the cave she sensed that will was nonexistent just moments ago. Being angry with Bruce would have to wait, and she knew it. She believed in her heart that Bruce would eventually find a way to pull through this and return to being the Batman that the Justice League had all come to know and respect. Right now though he would need the support of his teammates, friends, and family. She only wondered what comfort she could provide him from her perspective. "Miss Diana, what are you doing out of the cave?" A swiftly approaching Alfred abruptly asked while holding a tray with two cups and a carafe of coffee in hand.

Diana stood away from the grandfather clock with her shoulders slumped slightly, and she grabbed her left arm at the elbow as it hung down at her side. "Bruce…." She started. "He's awake Alfred."

"Thank heavens." Alfred said. He then noticed the saddened look upon Diana's face. "What is it my dear?"

"He wished to be alone Alfred." Diana answered in an almost whispered voice. "He said he couldn't feel his arms or legs."

"Oh." Alfred responded. "I see. Well, Miss Diana please don't take offense to the Master asking for a moment to compose himself. Master Bruce has never been one to take such things as severe injuries lightly. Shall we have a seat and provide Master Bruce with a few more minutes?"

Alfred led Diana further into the library and over to a couch where she took a seat. Alfred set the tray he was holding down before he poured Diana a cup and handed it to her. Then he poured himself a cup and sat down next to her. Diana leaned forward with her elbows resting on her knees. She held the coffee mug in both hands and seemed to be staring intently into the dark liquid. Alfred sat quietly next to her. He seemed to have a sense about him that let him know she was looking for the words to something. After a few moments, she finally began to speak. "How long have you known Bruce?" She asked.

"I've known the young man since birth Miss Diana." He answered. "Why do you ask?"

Diana ignored Alfred's question and continued along the path that she was laying. "Since he decided to become Batman, have you ever seen or heard him giving in?"

Alfred was beginning to become concerned about this line of questioning that he was being asked, and he wasn't hiding that concern from his facial features as he answered once again. "While I am certain there have been times where Master Bruce has questioned whether or not what he does at night helps or not, I cannot recall a time where giving in has been an option the Master has allowed to escape his own mind."

Diana took a sip of her coffee before returning to her position of staring at it. "He said that he was no good to the League or the city Alfred." Diana said. "And then asked to be alone, but while I was on my way up the stairs, I could hear him apologizing to no one in the room."

Realization donned on Alfred upon hearing Diana letting him know what she'd heard Bruce saying. "I believe he might have been apologizing to his parents Miss." Alfred explained. Diana looked up into the butler's eyes with a questioning gaze, and he decided to delve a little further so that Diana could understand. "You see Miss, when Master Bruce lost his parents so many years ago; he made a vow to them. This vow was to protect the city in their honor. His main desire was to prevent any other child from experiencing the tragedy that he was forced to. At first I believed this vow was just out of anger towards the man that had taken Mr. and Mrs. Wayne's lives that horrible night, but as the years progressed Master Bruce proved that he meant every word."

"And he believes that if he's paralyzed that he has failed them?" Diana assumed more than asked.

"That would be a correct assumption Miss." Alfred confirmed. "I think we've given the Master enough time. Let's check on him before we wake the others." Alfred stood and picked up the tray before waiting for Diana to follow. She looked into the dark liquid once more before putting the mug to her mouth and swallowing all that remained in it. She stood and handed the mug to the waiting Alfred and followed him over to the grandfather clock, where he once again manipulated the hour and minute hands before pulling on the hidden lever in order to gain access to the Batcave entrance. Once opened they both made their way down the stairs, each was secretly hoping that they would find Bruce struggling to get free from the medical table, but their hopes were summarily dashed as they came to find Bruce exactly where he'd been before. His eyes were closed and as they came close enough, they could see where a stream of tears had trailed down each side of his face. Diana stayed just behind Alfred as the older man approached slowly. When he was right next to the table, he leaned in a little more closely and quietly spoke. "Hello young man."

"It's been a long time since you've called me that." Bruce said without opening his eyes.

"Yes it has sir." Alfred agreed. "Welcome back Master Bruce. We were all quite concerned."

"I assumed so. Otherwise how else would Clark and Diana have known to find me." Bruce said just before he opened his eyes to look at the older man that had been basically his father during the latter part of his life. He then noticed that Diana was with Alfred. "Diana, I need you to reach out to Clark so that I can inform him of my resignation from the League."

Both Alfred and Diana gasped slightly upon hearing that. "Don't you think you should give it some time before making any rash decisions?" Diana asked. "As I said before, you can't be certain that your current condition….."

"I have no feelings in my arms or legs, Diana." Bruce interrupted. "I'll do what I can to keep the League function financially, but aside from that I have nothing to offer anymore." Bruce took a deflating breath and then looked back at Alfred. "How are Nightwing and Batgirl?"

"Master Nightwing took a rather nasty beating, but will in some time fully recover from his injuries." Alfred responded. "Batgirl has a mild concussion, but otherwise is in good health."

"Good." Bruce replied. "I assume Leslie is here." When Alfred nodded affirmatively he continued. "Go ahead and have her come down to check on my condition. We need to make some preparations for an alibi as to how Bruce Wayne became paralyzed."

Alfred began to make his exit when Bruce began to address Diana again. "I'm sure you have something to get off your chest Diana. Go ahead while we've got a few minutes."

"Now isn't the time Bruce." Diana said. "You need to rest and heal from your injuries. We can confront the topic of where you and I stand later."

"I can't guarantee there will be a later Diana." Bruce said.

Diana placed a hand on her chest and took a step back. She was caught off guard by how different Bruce seemed. Gone was that confident arrogance that Bruce always showed off from behind the cowl or that billionaire playboy smile. "What are you saying Bruce?" She asked.

"What am I saying?" He repeated in a tone that was almost as if he were insulted to be asked such a question. "I'm saying that Batman is the only valid link between the Justice League and myself. Without that then there isn't a valid reason for a paraplegic Bruce Wayne to have ties to anyone from the League aside from financial support."

"What about how you pursued friendship with me as the billionaire Bruce Wayne?" Diana asked as she was slightly hurt and becoming somewhat angry with him at the same time. "Was all that just a ruse?"

Bruce remained silent as a response. "Are you too cowardly to answer me Bruce?" Diana prodded. "What did you hope to gain from approaching me in such a manner? Did you really think that I was naive or ignorant enough that I wouldn't be able to piece together that Batman and Bruce Wayne are the same man?"

Bruce knew that he owed Diana an explanation, but the words seemed to leave him before he could respond to her questions. "What was it that was so worth betraying my trust and insulting my intelligence Bruce?"

"I…." Bruce began to stammer as he fought within himself to answer her. "I….didn't intend….to go passed the charity Diana."

"Then why did you Bruce?" Diana asked as the anger was now reaching her voice clearly. She dropped her arms to her sides and her hands clenched into tight fists. "Why did you continue to pursue me if you didn't want anything more than to talk to me during the charity gala?"

Bruce remained silent, but not so much because he didn't want to answer her. More so Bruce simply didn't know why he did it himself. He knew that he pursued her in that fashion, and it was not the other way around. If he'd not given his word that he would call or if he'd simply not asked her to meet again outside the gala, Diana wouldn't have thought twice about contacting him again. That thought made him shake to his core for reasons that he didn't understand or know. "I hope you gained whatever it was you were looking for Bruce." Diana spat out at him before turning to walk away. "I'll tell Kal that you are seeking an audience with him to officially resign."

Bruce felt something else brewing inside of him at that moment. It was an unfamiliar feeling that he didn't like in the least, but he knew that he was the cause of it. He closed his eyes for a second and took a short breath. "I don't know." He whispered.

Diana stopped in her tracks as her sense of hearing easily picked up what he'd whispered. She stood there with her back to him. "What do you mean you don't know?"

"I didn't mean to hurt you Diana." Bruce said in a very contrite voice. "I didn't mean to continue seeing you. I knew you would put the pieces together sooner or later regardless of how well I kept up my guard. I….I wasn't trying to take advantage….I just don't know."

Diana stood there for a few moments. Bruce watched as her shoulders rose and fell with each breath she took. It felt like time was standing still as he waited to see if she would say anything at all to him or if she would just leave. Finally after a couple of minutes she turned her head so she could see his face. "When you find out your reasoning you may call me again Bruce." She said and then took flight and headed out of the cave. Bruce puffed out the air he didn't realize he was holding inside all that time.

"Give her some time sir." Alfred said before Bruce realized that he had been there the whole time. "Miss Diana will return once she's had some time to think."

"No Alfred." Bruce responded. "I've burned the bridge between us. She's gone for good."

"I don't think so sir." Alfred replied. Bruce raised a bruised eyebrow in confusion at the older man standing before him. "She didn't say never to contact her again sir. So there is still hope that you can rebuild that bridge. If you have the desire to do so that is sir."

~~ Three hours later ~~

Diana flew around Gotham for an hour before she requested teleportation back up to the Watchtower. She needed some rest after the day that she'd been through. It had been an emotional rollercoaster for her, and she was beyond exhausted. She didn't stop to chat with anyone once she was onboard and instead headed directly to her own personal quarters. As soon as her head hit the pillows of her bed she passed out. Her sleep however wasn't a restful one. She tossed and turned in her bed as her mind seemed to refuse to stop processing things from the past 24 hours. Finally she gave in on getting any sleep and made her way to the commissary for some more caffeine. It was there that she found Kal eating breakfast by himself. He looked about as exhausted as she felt. Diana made her way over to the coffee maker and poured herself a cup before she took a seat across from Superman. "Good morning Kal." She greeted him.

"I'm not sure about that Diana." Kal responded. "Good doesn't seem to cut it today. Not after last night."

"I understand what you mean." Diana replied. "Speaking of last night, Br….Batman requested that I relay a message to you. He wishes to resign from the League."

"What? Why?" Kal asked.

"Because of his condition." Diana explained. "He's paralyzed Kal."

Superman's eyes became as large as saucers upon hearing that. "No." He said under his breath. "It can't be."

"I'm sorry Kal, but it is." Diana responded. "He said as much to me before I left the cave."

"I can't believe he's giving up Di." Kal stated. "He's never given up before. Why wouldn't he at least give it some time to see if his condition doesn't improve first?"

"Perhaps in time he will change his mind Kal." Diana offered as she tried to supply a glimmer of hope. "In the meantime, he also requested that we provide him with the mission report on the volcanic activity. Batman said that he would at least look through our findings to see if there are any links between that and this Bane character. According to Batman, Bane was hired in order to remove him from interfering with whatever Ra's al Ghul is planning."

"Let's call a meeting together for today so that we can go over everything before we send it down to have Batman review everything." Superman suggested.

"How do we have Batman attend?" Diana asked. "I doubt he is in any condition to travel and he'll certainly want to protect his identity from anyone that hasn't figured out who he is underneath the cowl."

"We're not inviting him Di." Kal stated. "I'll inform the League that Batman is on temporary administrative leave until further notice. If anyone asks then I'll tell them that he is going off the grid working on an assignment in Gotham."

"Why?" Diana asked.

"Because as much as he likes to think so Di, Batman isn't always right." Kal answered confidently. "That man is too stubborn to give in, and he'll come around eventually. I just know it."

~~ Rundown warehouse in Gotham ~~

"I have completed my part of the deal." Bane said to the man standing in the shadows. "Now it's time for you to finish payment."

"I have your payment. I also am sending some of my men to confirm that the detective is out of commission Mr. Bane." Ra's al Ghul countered. "We can't have him helping the Justice League. Not after the test run was successful."

"I left the Bat broken and even injured one of his clan in the process, free of charge." Bane stated confidently before changing topics. "What is your plan Mr. al Ghul? I believe I've earned the right to know what I'm involved in."

"It's quite simple really." Ra's stated. "I intend to ensure that the evils of man do not interfere with my plans for rebuilding the world where crime will not exist. Man is the disease for this world, and I am going to rectify that situation by starting the world over with a clean slate."

"That will require many deaths." Bane surmised. "Are you certain that you have all of the resources needed? How will you keep the Justice League from stopping you? They are a formidable lot."

"While that is true, without the detective to help them they pose little threat to stopping me before it's too late." Ra's responded arrogantly. "Once I receive confirmation that you've kept your end of the bargain, if you are interested, I wouldn't be opposed to finding a place for you within my League of Assassins. The benefits would far outweigh the losses if you choose not to join I can assure you."

"I am intrigued Mr. al Ghul." Bane said.

"Very well then." Ra's said before snapping his fingers, which caused another man to appear before Bane with a briefcase in hand. The man held it up and allowed Bane to open it to view the contents. "Your final payment for handling the detective." Ra's continued. "I will be in contact as soon as confirmation has been made."

Bane took the briefcase and turned to leave the building. As soon as the door closed behind him, Talia appeared from behind Ra's over his right shoulder. "I do not trust him father." She said. "Even if he has been successful in defeating Batman, I don't believe he is someone that should be a part of the League."

"I will take your concerns under advisement daughter." Ra's responded. "Bane is an intriguing prospect, and he's also controllable. My researchers have found that the very poison which gives Bane his strength has also become a dependent for his body. Without it he will slowly and painfully die in time. So long as we control the supply of his venom, we control him, and if he chooses to become a problem then I already know what to do in order to stop him. With some guidance, perhaps he could be the heir to my empire that your beloved detective so vehemently declined to accept."

Talia lowered her head slightly and turned away from her father until an idea came to her. "Father, I request that you send me to discover if there is truth to Bane's claim that he has broken Batman."

Ra's turned to his daughter and looked deeply into her eyes for any possible signs that she would betray him. He circled around her as she stood still awaiting his response. "Very well daughter. But do not take long. We leave this city in a week's time so that the next phase can begin."

~~ Watchtower ~~

Flash sped into the conference room for the impromptu meeting that Superman had scheduled earlier with donuts and iced mochas for everyone. He was actually a little late due to having to be careful while carrying everything in at once. He knew he was being hopeful when he had grabbed the seventh cup, but wasn't surprised to see that Batman wasn't in attendance. At that realization, instead of setting the cup down at the empty seat he kept it with him and set it down on the floor next to his own chair where no one would see it. Flash was actually surprised that he wasn't the last one in the conference room as well, as Superman was not there yet either. Flash took his seat quietly for probably the first time ever as he observed Diana sitting across from him. Something about her didn't seem to be the same as it normally was. While she was never the most talkative of the group, she always at least joined in to the conversations that were going on unless she was working on something in front of her, but at this time she was merely sitting there with her arms folded in front of her chest staring off at nothing. Flash was about to say something to her when he heard Superman coming into the conference room. He was talking to someone on the communicator.

"Look, all I'm saying is just think it…." Superman said before he was interrupted on the other end of the communicator session. "Alright…No, I'm not going to make any rash decisions just because…." He was once again interrupted, and frustration was starting to set in. The rest of the conference room had focused on his own conversation with whomever at that point. As Superman's facial expression became more and more frustrated, it became obvious to everyone else that he had to be arguing with Batman. Only he could frustrate Superman so easily. "Just….let me….Look, I'm in the conference room. I have to…. No I won't do that…We'll discuss this later."

Superman ended the transmission and finished walking over to his seat. He almost collapsed into his seat sighing as though he were completely exhausted. Everyone else kept the focus on the Man of Steel as he sat slumped in his chair for a minute or two. He looked around the table until his eyes landed on Diana. She was holding a blank stare at the moment, and he knew that he needed to begin. He took a deep breath to clear his mind and stood with his hands resting on top of the table as he leaned against it. "I know some of you are wondering why I've called this meeting, but there's been some significant topics that couldn't wait for our standard meeting." Superman began. "First is that we've confirmed the incident in Washington and the prison break out in Gotham weren't isolated incidents. Batman encountered an individual that calls himself Bane that night. Bane was the one that let all of the criminals loose in order to draw out and attack Batman."

"Why would he do something like that?" Green Lantern asked.

"According to Batman, this Bane character was hired by Ra's al Ghul in order to go after him." Superman explained. "Batman believes this was to keep him away from whatever it is that Ra's is planning, and he also believes that the volcanic activity in Washington is directly related to whatever that plan is."

"Why isn't Batman here so that we can compare notes and come up with a strategy on how to stop this Ra's al Ghul?" Shayera asked.

Superman looked over to Flash for a second before turning his head to face Diana. Her expression was no longer blank, but held a sorrowful tone about it now. "Batman…." Superman started as he turned back towards Shayera. "Batman won't be coming aboard anytime soon."

"What do you mean?" Shayera asked.

"Batman requested that he be put on temporary leave of absence." Superman answered. It was a lie though. The communicator call he'd been on was with Batman. He'd stated that he wanted to resign completely from the League because he was nothing more than a detriment to the team now. Superman refused to accept and countered with just using a temporary inactive status, but Batman had been vehemently opposed to that option. He'd made up his mind and that was to be the end of it. But with Batman not present to argue his point, Superman decided to supersede him.

"How long is temporary?" J'onn asked.

Superman signaled over to Flash before he spoke again. "Flash investigated the area where the confrontation occurred, so hopefully he would know more than me, but Batman was injured during the fight. It's going to take some time for him to heal. Speaking of, Flash, what were you able to find out about the scene of the crime?"

Flash took a last slurp of his iced mocha before he typed in some commands onto the console. A 3D image appeared before all the League members. "I found some surveillance footage from nearby buildings." Flash said. "I'll warn you, it isn't pretty." Flash hit the play button and the feed began showing a distorted view of the battle on the GCPD building. Shayera inadvertently cringed when she saw Batman's head rammed into and through the brick wall. John and Diana were glued to the footage playing before them. They'd never seen Batman so handily defeated before. Even against villains much more powerful than he was. Flash stopped the feed when Bane held Batman over his head, ready for the finishing blow.

"As you can see, Bane is not someone to be taken lightly." Superman concluded. "Batman was willing to review our notes and look through what he has for any possible leads. In the mean time, we'll all just have to pick up the slack while Batman heals."

The meeting didn't last too much longer as Superman wanted to keep the questions about Batman down to a minimum. When the others filed out of the conference room though, Diana stopped at the doorway and entered a code to shut and lock the door. Her back was still facing Superman as he waited for what it was she needed to get off her chest. He didn't have to wait long. "You lied to everyone in the meeting, didn't you?" She stated more than asked. "Bruce didn't agree to a temporary leave of absence."

"No, he didn't." Superman confessed.

"Why didn't you respect his wishes?" She asked as she turned to face him.

"Because sometimes even Batman isn't always right Diana." Superman explained. "He's extremely hard headed and he usually is right, but not always. I believe this is one of those times, and I have faith that he'll return once he's healed."

"Do you know something that you're not telling me?" She asked.

"No Diana." Superman responded. "I just have this feeling inside. A feeling that Batman will return. Besides, as annoying and as much of an ass as he can be, the League is better with Batman in it than without."

That blind faith seemed to make something click inside of Diana. Her body flinched for a moment as her mind began to race. "Is everything alright Diana?" Superman asked as he noticed the flinching motion.

"Oh, yes Kal." Diana responded. "I just thought of something that I need to do. Thank you for answering me honestly."

Diana turned again and unlocked the door so that she could make her exit. She had monitor duty to attend soon, but she needed to head to her personal quarters quickly first. She needed a moment away from any prying ears.

~~ Wayne Manor ~~

After Dr. Leslie checked over Bruce in the Batcave, she decided that they could begin to cease the cold treatment that was preventing any swelling from taking place. She recruited Alfred, Dick, and Tim to secure Bruce and bring him up to the Manor so that he could be more comfortable. It would be a long road ahead for Bruce, especially if he didn't regain the use of his limbs. She knew that they'd done all they could to help him, but now Bruce would have to accept that it would take time. Leslie oversaw the move from the cave to the master bedroom where Bruce would stay. She provided Alfred with all the details on how to go about handling Bruce as she knew him well enough to know that outside help wouldn't be permitted. That was at least until a suitable alibi was planted and had taken shape to cover his tracks as a night time vigilante.

Alfred had already begun the process of informing those that needed to know of Bruce's abrupt absence. Fortunately this wouldn't be the first time that such an absence had occurred, so no one would think any differently. However, during the "absence", an accident would have to occur which explained away the injuries so that Alfred could hire the proper help for Bruce. He never cared for allowing extra help in the house as they could be more trouble than they were worth, but in instances like this professional assistance would know better how to handle someone with such an injury. Alfred was despondent at seeing how someone as strong as Bruce had been reduced to such a dire state. While he always knew there could be a time where Bruce was critically injured or even killed, he'd never imagined that Bruce would end up like this.

Tim had chosen to stay and help Alfred until Barbara showed back up. She was coming over after work to go through more information on Bane and then would be heading out on patrol. Without Batman, it would only be a matter of time before the criminals began to gain confidence in their own safety. Dick was going to come back by for the first few nights to help keep an eye on Gotham. He couldn't stay for long though as Bludhaven required him to be there quite a bit as it was. Tim decided that he would continue going out and watching from afar until Dick gave his blessing that he was ready to join in on patrols actively. Tim knew that Bruce needed there to be a Robin now more so than ever. Bruce had done too much for this city to have it all crumble away. When they had made certain that Bruce was resting, Tim went to his room to change so that he could begin training. He needed to be ready as soon as possible.

Bruce had fallen asleep after cursing about the damn Kryptonian that had hung up on him. If he had the ability to, he would have teleported up to the Watchtower and crammed a piece of Kryptonite down Clark's throat. Unfortunately that anger sapped almost all of Bruce's energy away. He felt so weak and helpless, and that frustrated him to his core. He was going to hate his life even more than he already did before the injury. He actually slept through the transition from cave to Manor, which was surprising, but only until he realized that Leslie had doped him up with pain medication. It was yet another item of the checklist of things that he couldn't stop anymore. If anyone were inclined to do so, they could pump him full of pain killers and he wouldn't be able to stop them. And while the pain was subdued, Bruce still knew that he couldn't move. He actually slept for a few hours after he'd been moved and only woke up when Alfred opened the bedroom door. "What is it Alfred?" Bruce asked in a drowsy voice.

"I'm sorry sir, but you seem to have a visitor." Alfred stated as he stepped aside to allow the visitor entrance into the master bedroom.


	22. Chapter 22: Meetings and Confrontations

Diana walked in when Alfred moved aside allowing her access. "I hope you don't mind Bruce." She said as she approached the bed. "I called Alfred earlier and asked if you were allowed to have visitors."

Bruce looked over towards his butler who was standing as still and proper as he normally would, not even flinching under his master's heated glare. While Bruce was unable to use his arms or legs, the glare had certainly not faded. Diana smirked upon seeing that glare once again. "I see the situation hasn't changed your outlook." She commented as she gently sat on the bed next to Bruce. "It's nice to know that there's another person that's unaffected from your glares."

Bruce's eyes moved back over to look at his guest. "You're not here to try and change my mind on resigning are you?"

"Hera Bruce." Diana replied. "I might be immortal, but even that wouldn't be enough time to convince you to change your mind."

Bruce groaned at hearing the joke pointed at his expense. He tried to keep his focus, but the pain medication made it difficult to keep his thoughts in order. He was already becoming exhausted just from the short conversation with Diana. She leaned forward giving Bruce a closer examination before she pulled out a USB drive and held it out in front of him. "I brought you the information that you requested." She said. "I know it's too soon, but I also wanted to check up on you."

"Why?" He asked.

"At first I wouldn't have been able to explain it myself Bruce." Diana answered. "But after thinking things through, even though I'm still angry with you I also still think of you as a friend. Friends should do things such as check up on one another shouldn't they?"

"I wouldn't know." Bruce responded. "Batman doesn't have the luxury of friends, and Bruce Wayne only has rich socialite parasites that follow him around." He then looked over at Alfred. "Would you bring me my laptop Alfred? I may as well make myself useful."

Alfred nodded and departed to retrieve the laptop for Bruce. While he knew that Bruce shouldn't be working on anything, he also believed that Diana wouldn't let him go too far or too long without rest. By the time he'd retrieved the laptop and returned Diana had situated herself in a manner that the laptop could be held by her and Bruce would be able to see the screen easily. He gave her the laptop and input the password so that she could maneuver with it. Diana stuck in the USB and began opening files for Bruce to review. She leaned back against the headboard, using a spare pillow to keep her as comfortable as she could. She didn't want to force Bruce to move around anymore than necessary.

As Bruce worked through the first few files, Diana began to absentmindedly run her fingers through his hair. He paused for a moment when she first started, but then realized Diana wasn't even aware that she was doing it, so he focused back on the files displayed on the computer screen. He didn't know how long Diana would be able or willing to stay and he wanted to get to as much information as he possibly could. However barely half an hour had passed when the weight of his eyelids overtook him and brought him into a deep slumber.

Diana stayed there quietly looking over Bruce as he slept peacefully with her next to him. A small smile grew on her face as she watched him sleep. When she was certain he wouldn't wake up, she slowly moved the laptop off of her and placed it onto the nightstand beside the side of the bed she was sitting on. She stayed there for a few more minutes before she began to slowly slide off of the bed, being careful not to disturb him. As she started to walk away from the bed, she could hear Bruce mumbling something. She began to wonder if he was waking up, and she returned to the bedside for a closer inspection, but he was mumbling something while he slept. Diana couldn't quite make out what it was that Bruce was saying, but he had a content look on his face that caused her to smile. She sent out a silent prayer to her gods to let Bruce have a peace filled slumber before she left the bedside again and headed out of the bedroom. She went down the stairs and walked around seeking out Alfred until she could make out some noises that sounded like a conversation between two people. As she got closer she could make out that Alfred was one of the two speaking, and he was talking to a female.

Diana continued quietly approaching the other two as they continued to talk to each other. She listened to the conversation taking place as she continued to get closer. "I'm sorry miss." She heard Alfred say. "Master Bruce simply isn't available at the moment."

"He would certainly make an exception for me if you would let him know that I'm here." The woman responded. "I demand you let me speak with him."

Diana wasn't about to let Bruce be disturbed while he was resting, and she decided to walk into the foyer where Alfred and this woman was and put a stop to this. "What's going on Alfred?" Diana asked as the two people she appeared around the corner. Diana looked at the woman and noticed that she was a beautiful woman with long brunette hair that covered a portion of her face. She wasn't quite as tall as Diana, but the way she seemed to carry herself almost spoke as though she were royalty or at least believed herself to be.

When Diana spoke, both Alfred and Talia looked over to her. Talia was not happy to see this woman in the Manor. "And just who are you?" She seethed. "Has my beloved hired a maid service as well?"

"I am not a maid." Diana fired back. "My name is Diana. Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

"My name is Talia." The woman answered. "And I'm here to see Bruce." She turned back to Alfred. "Obviously he is permitting guests, though I cannot fathom why he would want to be associated with such a harlot." Venom was practically dripping from her every word as she pointed in Diana's direction.

Diana was becoming quite aggravated with this woman and her insulting words. "Bruce is resting at the moment." She stated with her hands clenched into fists at her side. "I will not allow you to disturb him until he is awake, and tells one of us that you are welcome here. So you can try another time….."

"I will do no such thing." Talia interrupted. She turned back to Alfred. "If what this _woman_ says is true, then I will wait in the library until he is awake." She then stormed off towards the library, leaving Diana and Alfred in her wake.

Diana waited there until the woman was gone before she turned towards Alfred. "Just who was that?" She asked.

Alfred let out a calming sigh. "I'm afraid that is an old acquaintance of Master Bruce's." He answered.

"How close of an acquaintance is she?" Diana requested. "And why did she refer to Bruce as beloved earlier?"

Alfred paused for a moment until Diana began to glare at him. "There was a time where Miss Talia and Master Bruce were quite a bit closer than they are at the moment." Alfred responded. "If not for Miss Talia's familial issues, she might have been closer still with Master Bruce, but that was simply not meant to be."

Diana wasn't sure why, but she had a bad feeling about this woman. There was also a different feeling that she had just experienced. She wasn't sure how to describe the feeling, but this woman was the trigger for it and she was certain of that. Especially upon hearing Talia call Bruce her beloved. She was going to keep an eye on the woman until Bruce woke up so that he could decide if he wanted to see Talia or not. Diana took it upon herself to follow Talia into the library so that she could ensure that Talia didn't try anything funny until that time came as well.

The two women sat at different ends of the library with books in hand to keep them occupied. Diana made sure to remain close to the doorway so that Talia wouldn't be able to slip by unnoticed. She found some Shakespeare to keep her occupied as she took a seat in one of the lounge chairs and began to read the famous pieces of literature.

Talia was not taking much time in reading through any book that she picked out. She didn't like being made to wait. Especially with this tall and infuriating woman that seemed to refuse to stay away from her. And having to spend the better part of three hours in the same room with this woman was driving her crazy. She wondered if her beloved had bedded this woman, but that thought sickened her to her bones. She peered over the top of a book that she was holding and gave this other woman an appraising look. At a second glance, she concluded to herself that this woman simply wasn't the type that her beloved would keep with him as a party distraction. While the woman was beautiful, she was taller and much more muscular than any of the debutants that Bruce had paraded around in front of the cameras with before. Not to mention that her choice of attire did not do anything to say she came from riches. Perhaps she was a body guard for Bruce, not unlike the woman named Mercy was for another billionaire tycoon named Lex Luthor. She initially scoffed at that idea, which caused the woman to look up at her for a moment. Talia quickly averted her eyes back to the book in front of her, and after waiting a few moments she turned the page and glanced up again to see if the woman had returned to her own book. It was in that split second glance that something clicked for Talia. There was something very familiar about the woman sitting there. Talia placed her book back on one of the shelves and walked towards the other woman with an appraising look. She hadn't made but three steps, and the woman looked up and shut her book before standing up to block the doorway, placing her hands on her hips. That was all it took for recognition to kick in. "You're Wonder Woman." Talia stated matter of factly. "And being Wonder Woman while visiting Bruce Wayne indicates that you've figured out beloved's secret."

"Or he chose to tell me." Diana countered.

Talia shook her head. "You must think that I do not know my love very well if you think I'd believe for an instant that he would tell you his secret willingly." Diana knew she had a point there. Had she not discovered it on her own, Bruce very well might have always kept his secret from her or anyone else for that matter. Talia smirked in satisfaction as she continued on. "Bruce would never tell anyone about his nighttime activities. So how did you find out?"

Diana thought about not answering Talia. She clearly knew about Bruce being Batman, but Diana didn't know how she would have found out. If she and Bruce were ever lovers, then she knew that he wouldn't willingly tell anyone, did that include her as well? Talia chuckled as she walked over to a window and looked out at the Manor grounds. Diana decided to play along for the moment to see what she could discover herself about Talia without giving anything important away at the same time. "Recent events that weren't under his control allowed me to discover Bruce's secret." Diana answered. "And just how did you learn about it?"

Talia smiled at Diana. "He told me of course."

"Since you know that I'm Wonder Woman, you should also know that I'm a beacon of truth." Diana fired back with a frown and her arms now crossed in front of her chest. "I know that you're lying to me now, and if you prefer the hard way, I can easily get the lasso of truth and force the answers from you."

The smile on Talia's face drained into a small smirk at hearing that. "My father discovered Bruce's secret and infiltrated his cave to meet him." She conceded.

"Why would your father seek him out like that?" Diana asked.

"Father, like Bruce detests crime in this world and seeks to expunge it entirely." Talia explained. "He saw the same qualities in the manner with which the masked vigilante of Gotham City worked, and thought that the man would make an excellent heir to his empire. Father then orchestrated a kidnapping of Robin and myself so that he could test Batman. And beloved not only passed the test, but impressed my father as well. But when father made the offer to him, even with his love for me and my love for him, it wasn't enough to convince Bruce to join us. It was truly unfortunate. Beloved is quite the wonderful lover if you've been lucky enough to share a bed with him."

Diana tried to hide the anger that welled up inside her from the last comment Talia made, but knew that she had failed when she saw the smirk on Talia's face grow. "Then if he refused your offer, why are you here?" Diana questioned in an almost snarling growl.

"I've come to see if beloved is in fact harmed as I've been informed, and to offer him a seat next to me once again." Talia explained. "I may also have a solution for beloved if his injuries are severe and long lasting."

"Just one last question Talia." Diana said as she had heard enough about how this woman wanted Bruce to join her. "If Bruce chose to decline your father's offer, what does that say about the type of man your father is?"

Before Talia was able to answer, Alfred and Dick appeared in the doorway to the library. "Pardon me Miss Talia and Miss Diana, but Master Bruce is awake." He declared. Talia didn't waste a moment's time as she bolted around Diana and made her way to the staircase that led to the bedrooms. Diana was caught off guard by the look she noticed on Dick's face when he saw Talia in the room. It was an unwelcoming look, and appeared as though he was surprised that Talia had the nerve to be there. Diana was curious about why that would be and instead of following Talia up to the bedroom, she instead followed Dick as he went straight for the Batcave entrance.

When Bruce woke up, he was slightly disappointed to find that Diana had gone. As much as he hated to admit it, there was something about being around her that made him feel more at ease. Perhaps it was because she was the most powerful woman in the world and she was watching over him. That had to be what it was he'd convinced himself. It was with great surprise when he saw Talia burst through the bedroom door. "What are you doing here Talia?" Bruce asked as his guest as she slowed and walked into the bedroom before sitting next to him on the bed. Talia reached her hand over and cupped Bruce on the cheek as she gazed upon him warmly.

"I'm sorry to see you in such a state beloved." She said.

"You can thank your father for this." Bruce seethed. "Now answer my question."

"I missed you beloved." Talia answered. "Seeing you like this troubles me my love. I hope that I can now convince you to finally join me with my father and take your place as his rightful heir. The Lazarus pits can heal you of your injuries if you would join us. I beg of you to accept our offer. Then we could create this world in a model of peace."

"Have you dipped in the pits with your father Talia?" Bruce asked in a low growl. "You're starting to sound just like him with his delusions of grandeur."

Talia pulled her hand away from Bruce's face as though he had burned it. "Please beloved." She almost pleaded. "There is no stopping father this time. I only want what is best for you and I."

"Then you should have left Ra's to his own vices and stayed with me when you had the chance Talia." Bruce replied. "Any opportunity that we could've had to be happy together vanished by your willingness to follow the plans of a mad man as if you were a slave to your father's orders."

Talia lowered her head so that she was looking at her own lap. "I'm sorry that you feel this way beloved." She said with a saddened voice. "Know that I will always love you, no matter the consequences." Talia then looked Bruce in the eyes and slowly lowered her face closer to his. She watched carefully for any signs that he was uncomfortable. "You believe that, don't you beloved?" She asked as her lips paused just inches away from his. She still didn't see any response, positive or negative from him. She took that as a sign to continue and leaned the rest of the way in until her lips pressed gently against his own. She didn't deepen the kiss and neither did Bruce, but he also didn't make any attempt at telling her to stop so she continued kissing him gently for a few moments before finally pulling away. "I must go now my love. I will pray for a quick recovery and that you change your mind and come to be at my side, if not in this life then in the next."

Talia stood up and gave Bruce one last glance before she turned away and began to walk out of the room. She paused at the doorway for a moment and Bruce couldn't stay quiet any longer. "Tell your father Talia, that I will find a way to stop him." She turned and gave Bruce a sympathetic look at hearing his words.

"He would order Bane to stop you beloved." She responded. "The only way you will see father before it's too late is if you join us." After she said that she left through the doorway, leaving an incredibly frustrated Bruce behind. He looked down at his right hand as it just laid there next to his body. He tried to will his body to move his hand in any fashion. Even just a twitch from a finger would suffice. He gritted his teeth as he fought with his mind to get any reaction from his body, but nothing happened. Bruce puffed out a frustrated breath of air as he began to think about what he could do to stop the Demon's Head. He'd need help from others, but he would have to be careful about who he allowed to get that close to him.

Talia walked slowly down the stairs to the main foyer where Alfred happened to notice her. "Leaving already Miss Talia?" Alfred inquired.

"I'm afraid so Alfred." Talia answered. "Bruce wouldn't accept my offer and chooses to stand against my father still. I fear there is nothing here for me."

"I beg your pardon Miss, but I dare say that there is more for you here than there ever could be outside those doors." Alfred countered as he gestured towards the front doors that Talia had been headed towards.

Talia looked over at the doors for a moment before she sighed and turned her attention back to Bruce's servant. "Beloved is lucky to have a man so devoted to him such as you." She said. "Take care of him Alfred."

"I shall indeed madam." Alfred declared as he watched Talia turn and head to the front doors where she made her exit. He sighed once the doors had closed. She was such a lovely girl, and he knew that Bruce cared deeply for her still. He even believed that she cared very much for Bruce, but she would never go against her father, and that meant that she would never be with Bruce for very long. It was unfortunate that Bruce seemed to only have these types of women to look towards for a serious relationship. Surely there had to be one that would see Bruce's ideals and compliment him. He only hoped that he would live long enough to see the day where Bruce actually found that someone that could bring true happiness into his life. For the moment, Alfred pushed such wishes and hopes aside as he continued on his way to the kitchen so that he could fetch Bruce a meal. His master needed to eat and regain his strength.

Diana finally caught up to Dick as he entered the training area where Tim was still located. Even though Diana hadn't been officially told of the identities of Nightwing, Robin and Batgirl, she had been able to figure them out easily enough. Dick was after all Bruce's adopted son, Tim basically lived in the Manor, and Barbara Gordon had been the female that accompanied Bruce to the Charity Gala when Diana had first met Bruce officially. She was brought out of her reverie by the stiff punches being thrown by Dick onto the innocent punching bag. "I can't…..believe…..she has….the nerve…..to show here!" Dick yelled in between each left-right combo that he threw at the bag.

"What's going on Dick?" Diana asked, but Dick continued assaulting the punching bag. "Please answer me." She requested. When he ignored her again that time, she flew to the bag and smashed it with one of her fists so hard that the side ripped apart, dumping out the contents of the bag. She turned to look Dick in the eyes. "I asked you a question." She stated.

Dick took a few deep breaths. He hadn't seen a bag torn apart like that since his days as the Titans with Kory. "After what happened to Bruce, I can't believe you'd leave her in one piece." Dick seethed.

"I thought the one that harmed Batman was named Bane who was hired by Ra's al Ghul?" Diana questioned.

"You mean to tell me you don't know who she is?" Dick asked incredulously. When Diana still had a questioning look on her face, he continued. "Her name's Talia, Talia al Ghul. Ra's al Ghul is her father, and he's the one that hired Bane."

Brilliant anger lit up on Diana's face. This whole time she'd been in the same room with a daughter of the man that was behind the volcanic attacks and Bruce's current condition. She could have gleaned the information out of Talia with the lasso of truth instead of finding out how close this woman was to Bruce all that time. She immediately took flight and headed straight through the cave entrance and up the stairs to the master bedroom. She slammed the door open expecting to strangle the answers from Talia, but she instead only found Bruce there. "Perhaps I should know things about your previous relationships so that I don't allow them to walk away when they have answers that I need." Diana seethed as she lowered to the floor.

Bruce gave a cold look at Diana. "Talia would never give her father up." He stated. "She'd sooner take her own life than answer your questions, even if you used the lasso on her."

Diana stormed up to Bruce, and noticed the small smear of lipstick across his lips and she became instantly furious. "I can't believe you Bruce." She gritted through clenched teeth. "You let the daughter of a man who wishes to destroy the world just walk out of here, and allowed her to kiss you as well? What kind of man are you?"

"How was I supposed to stop her Diana?" Bruce yelled back. "I can't even fucking move! What do you want from me?"

Diana stopped for a moment as she tried to quell her anger, but her efforts were in vain as she was too angry to stop herself. "I want you to be you damn it!" She yelled as she began to pace back and forth with Bruce watching her.

"What you want may not even be possible Diana!" Bruce fired back before wincing in pain. He hoped that Diana wouldn't notice so that she wouldn't feel compelled to increase the pain medication running through the IV attached to his left arm. Diana did notice however, but she didn't make a move towards the IV control panel. Bruce centered himself to calm down before he began to speak again. "Yes." He said quietly. "She kissed me, and I know that her father is planning something. But I also know from past experience that no matter how close to her I might have been or could be now, she would never double cross her father. Not even for me. Questioning her would be wasting my time just as it would be for you. I also didn't know that she was even here until a few minutes ago when she came bursting into the bedroom."

"Are you in danger with her having been here?" Diana asked as she finally began to calm down from seeing Bruce already calm himself.

"No." Bruce answered. "Talia won't harm me, and she won't allow anyone from the League of Assassins to either. So long as I stay out of her father's way, neither will he. He seems to think that I can be swayed into taking his place one day, but even if I heal, that's never going to happen. He's a mad man."

Diana huffed out some of her frustration before she took a seat next to Bruce, and gently grabbed hold of his right hand before setting it on her lap. "I know Bruce." She said with a sigh. "I'm sorry for the way I acted just now. I didn't know."

"It's alright princess." Bruce said with a small smile on his face.

Diana felt something which made her turn to look at the man lying next to her. She couldn't help but to return the smile when she saw the look on his face. "I'm actually glad to hear you call me that Bruce." She said. "Hearing things like that from you makes it so that I can still see and feel the man that I fought beside. If it's alright, I'd like to be able to visit again. Perhaps we can continue with the investigation?"

"I'll be right here when you're available." Bruce made a half hearted attempt at a joke and Diana smiled again. Something about her smile made him feel as if the weight of the world wasn't pressing down on him at that moment. It was a pleasant feeling for him, and he reciprocated the smile.

Diana once again felt something, and she slowly moved Bruce's hand back by his side before standing to leave. She looked him deep in the eye, and he could have sworn for a moment that he saw tears building in her eyes. "In that case, I'll return tonight, and we'll go over the rest of the files." Diana said before she turned and left the bedroom. When she closed the door behind her, she stood just outside the bedroom door for a moment as she thought about what she'd felt two times before she gathered herself and made her way down to the cave to transport up to the Watchtower.


	23. Chapter 23: Babysteps in the Bedroom

Almost a week had gone by since Diana's confrontation with the daughter of the Demon's Head at Wayne Manor. She'd been able to come down to work through files with Bruce for a couple of hours almost every night, but he'd been unable to trace any link between Bane and the tectonic plate shifting devices that had been used in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Diana found herself to be amazed as she helped Bruce work through all of the information, watching him as he worked feverishly to uncover the plans that Ra's al Ghul had for the world. The man was like a machine at times as he poured over seemingly every detail. Diana couldn't believe that anything would ever be able to get passed the man as he instructed her on how he wanted to investigate every seemingly innocuous bit of details that were supplied in the report their fellow League teammates had put in.

The first two visits were rather uncomfortable as Bruce dealt with his frustration on his current condition. He didn't like having to have someone there to merely type information into the computer at all. In fact, Diana had to weather the temperamental man for the first hour each time she came by. Initially Alfred had warned her upon her initial arrival of Bruce's poor attitude. Sure enough, the older man had been correct in his description of Bruce's demeanor. As soon as he'd seen Diana walking into the bedroom, Bruce immediately tried to order her to leave and to have her deliver his resignation to the rest of the League. He no longer trusted Superman with such things since the man had refused to listen to him and inform the League during the last League meeting held. By the fourth day however, with one small possible lead to look forward to, Bruce stopped demanding that his request for resignation be honored. He instead wanted Diana, someone, anyone there so that he could continue following that lead to its end.

By the sixth night, Bruce had found some companies that designed parts of the components that Ra's had needed based off of Superman's description of what the machine looked like. Bruce wanted to investigate further on the safest means of stopping the machines if it came down to that as Ra's had remained silent to that point. He had uncovered that Superman's just removing the machine, which he'd deduced was the prototype test run, had caused almost as much damage as if he'd have left it in the Earth. Tremors, earthquakes, and more volcanic activity had been occurring ever since. In fact, at the location where Superman had removed the device, there was now a new volcanic island. Its growth had been deemed exponential by all scientists and experts. They'd never before recorded such a movement as this island was now being considered a super volcano. It had already reached the size of Maui, and was showing no signs of slowing in its growth.

It was also on the sixth night that Superman had made the mistake of visiting Bruce to check up on his friend. Instantly he was met with an overwhelming anger from the still crippled man just from his being in the same room together. Bruce laid into him about not following through with advising the League about his desire to resign with numerous curse laden insults mixed in, and all of them pointed directly at the Kryptonian. Diana arrived when Superman had taken the last of the verbal jabs aimed at him. Unfortunately, the insults didn't come to an end because of Bruce running out of things to say, but rather because he was out of breath and still feeling the effects of some pain medication that he was still on. That combination had quickly exhausted Bruce. When Diana walked in and saw the still red faced Bruce trying to catch his breath, she almost wanted to slap Kal silly. She knew that now she'd have to spend half of her time there attempting to cool Bruce down again when she'd thought that they had finally moved passed that point just a few nights ago. She quickly followed Kal out of the bedroom and admonished him for not realizing that his direct refusal to abide to Bruce's wishes would certainly have had the effect that it did when he showed up. Even though she knew that his intentions were well placed, he still knew Bruce better than any other League member, and Diana even from her short time with Bruce, she knew that Kal's being there would bring about Bruce's wrath. She did cut her reprimand off though when she saw that Kal had actually been stung by some of Bruce's harsh words.

"It's alright Diana." Kal said trying to shrug it off.

"No Kal." Diana responded. "Bruce shouldn't have been so harsh towards a friend and colleague. Especially when you were only coming to check on him. But I hope you know that it's more the situation than it is you that is the result of his anger and frustration coming out. When Bruce is back up and able to return to his more independent ways, I'm sure the friendship between the two of you will return to normal."

Kal snorted and chuckled at the thought of that before something struck him. "You're sounding a little more optimistic about Bruce's recovery Diana." He said. "Is there something you know that I don't?"

Diana thought for a moment about the two instances where she had felt something while holding Bruce's hand that night almost a week ago. She hadn't had the same sensation at all during any other night, but her faith that Bruce would be alright didn't waver in the least. "It's just a feeling that I've been having while spending time with him Kal." Diana explained. "That's all."

Kal looked up at a clock and let out a tired sigh. "Well, I'd probably better get going." He responded with a smile. "Make sure Bruce behaves himself Diana."

She returned the smile from Kal with a smirk of her own before nodding and giving him a big hug. She watched him exit into the Batcave entrance before she turned on her heel and headed back into the bedroom. Once inside she closed the door behind her, and approached the bed to find a less red faced Bruce waiting. He was intentionally looking away from her though for reasons that she didn't know of. She decided to get onto business as the previous nights that had been the best way of getting Bruce's mind off of his injuries as well as his choice of wanting to resign. Diana had no desire to rehash that argument with him, and she hoped that he would keep business at the forefront until he'd calmed down. She grabbed the tablet PC before taking her seat next to Bruce on the bed and propping up her pillows for comfort before leaning back and looking over to Bruce, who seemed to have an interest in the wall on the opposite side of the room. "Bruce, don't you want to follow up on your lead from the other night?" Diana asked.

"Stupid Kryptonian." Bruce muttered under his breath. "Why don't you go see to _Kal_?"

Diana heard the snarling tone of Superman's Kryptonian name, and realized that Bruce was still fuming. "Do you want me to come back another night Bruce?" She asked.

Bruce remained silent and closed his eyes. His face was beginning to turn red again, and that told her that Bruce still needed some time to cool off. Diana set the tablet PC back onto the night stand, and stood up from the bed. "I'll be back in a few minutes Bruce." She said before heading back out of the bedroom and seeking out Alfred. She needed to stall for some time before she would attempt to get through to him again. Only time seemed to allow Bruce to gain control of his raging emotions. Little did Diana know though that Bruce was hiding something from everyone that he'd discovered earlier that day in which he had yet to reveal to anyone. He didn't want to say anything until he was sure himself.

~~ Gotham rooftops ~~

On this stormy night Dick, Barbara, and Tim were all out on the streets of Gotham patrolling the city. It had been six days with no Batman sightings, and the criminals had just begun to show some more courage with their activities after the sun had given way to the night. Dick wanted to squash that notion immediately, and to do so he had done something in which he'd promised himself that he would never do. When he arrived in the cave earlier that afternoon, he'd went over to the computer and started tracking all of the recently occurring crimes. Gotham was never going to be free of crime; there were always the small town crooks that were just desperate enough to continue down the slippery path which would eventually lead to a stay behind bars or worse. What Dick noticed though was that the number of violent crimes had jumped considerably since Batman's absence. Even with Nightwing, Batgirl, and Robin out patrolling, that wasn't enough to deter the increase. So in order to stop that trend, Dick attempted to settle things by donning the Batman suit himself and patrolling that way. Barbara and Tim understood Dick's reasoning and went along with him. While Tim wasn't quite ready to be on his own yet, Dick had Barbara patrol with Tim so that they could be split into two groups and cover more ground. Dick also thought to himself that perhaps if this plan settled things, then he could swing over to Bludhaven and check on his city as well. In the short term they'd all agreed that if anyone were to come across Bane, they would flee immediately as they didn't want to have Bruce blaming himself should anything happen to one of them, and they all knew that they weren't prepared to take on the masked man and come out on top. They'd been patrolling for a couple of hours when Dick found himself following three odd looking characters through the east end of town. They were walking slowly and kept peeking over their shoulders as though they were checking to see if they were being followed. Dick waited until he saw them approach a door to a factory and one of them pulled out a crowbar while the other two turned to stand watch. Dick quickly surveyed the area before he leapt off and glided down to his desired landing spot which just happened to be on top of the thug with the crowbar. The thug's face slammed into the door, and he was instantly down for the count.

The other two men took off running as they were in fear upon seeing the Dark Knight in person for the first time. Dick smirked before turning to restrain the other man. He chose to let the two others go just this once because he knew that they would be spreading the word that they'd run into Batman tonight. Batman's reputation alone would be enough so that Dick wouldn't have to get into the Batsuit again for the next few days at least. Fear was a wonderful tool to use at times. Once he was finished tying up the thug, Dick shot back up to the rooftops to continue his patrol. When he landed though, he immediately got into a defensive position. Something wasn't right on the rooftop and Dick could feel it. Suddenly his suspicions were confirmed by a voice that purred from the shadows. "How disappointing." Came the voice of Catwoman as she appeared at Dick's side. "So, I take it that the rumors are true, and now Robin all grown up is wearing the big boy pants."

"What do you want Selina?" Dick asked in a harsh voice.

"Well, I'll give you credit kid." Selina began. "You've certainly got the attitude down. Don't worry though; I'm not here to cause trouble. I only wanted to see if Batman really is out of the game for good like I've been hearing. I am curious though, why are you in his Batsuit?"

"That's none of your business." Dick fired back.

Selina smirked and approached Dick in a seductive manner before rubbing her body up against his. "Oh c'mon junior, I was only curious." Selina mock whined. "And besides, I owed Batman this." She pulled out the Bastet Amulet and held it out for Dick to take. He slowly and cautiously reached forward and removed the amulet from Selina's possession.

"What is this about?" Dick asked. "It seems too easy Selina."

Selina's shoulders slumped a little as she sighed before she explained. "Without the real Batman here, it kind of kills the mood. There's no more excitement for the hunt without him here to chase me. Maybe it's time for me to straighten up before it's too late."

"That would be a wise choice Selina." Dick replied as he relaxed his stance finally.

Selina smirked and began to walk away from Dick. "Send Batman my regards and best wishes." She said. "Tell him that I hope to see him soon. Besides…" She said as she climbed up onto the ledge of the roof. "That suit looks better on him than it does on you." Dick didn't get a chance to respond as Selina leapt off the rooftop leaving a bewildered Dick shaking his head at what had just happened. The night however was still young and Dick knew that there was much more to do so he fired off his grapple and took flight into the rain filled night.

While Dick was on his way over to Wayne Tower to regroup with the others, he was taken by surprise in seeing the Bat signal lighting up the night sky. Perhaps the Commissioner had wanted to know for sure if Batman was alright. It was also surprising that they had fixed or replaced the signal already. Dick knew that he'd be late, but the Commissioner was a good man and worked alongside the Batclan more than he should in the name of justice. So Dick promptly changed course and headed over to the GCPD rooftop.

Commissioner Gordon was standing by next to the new spotlight that was retrofitted into a new Bat signal. He was doing his best to keep dry in the rainfall that was intermittently changing from a steady rainfall to a downpour. He'd been standing up there in the rain for almost ten minutes, waiting for his true partner in the city's fight against crime, hoping that Batman would show and be alright. Jim didn't like what he'd heard from the bits and pieces he'd been told from his officers that had seen some of the confrontation. Then to have Flash onsite gathering intel left an uneasy feeling in Jim's stomach that something significant had happened. That feeling was quickly becoming an ulcer in his stomach. It was a feeling that he couldn't stand any longer once the signal was replaced. If Batman was critically injured, then Jim had no doubts Gotham would plummet into darkness and despair. After another five minutes had passed and Jim's jacket ceased blocking out the rain, he reached up to switch off the signal when he could feel a presence from behind him. "I hoped that you were alright." Jim said before turning around to see the man in the Batsuit standing before him. While it was a close resemblance, what little he could see of the man's face was enough to let him know that it wasn't the same Batman. "Or perhaps I was mistaken and Batman was seriously hurt."

"I wish I could report something you'd like to hear Commissioner." Dick responded. "I'm posing as Batman until he can take up the mantle again."

"So Batman's going to be alright?" Gordon asked.

"I don't want to lie to you Commissioner." Dick answered. "I also have this to hand over to you." Dick pulled out the amulet and handed it over to Gordon. "I ran into a cat burglar that gave this up."

"Oh." Gordon said. "Well, thank you for bringing it in. So how long do you think it'll be before someone discovers that you're really not him?"

"Hopefully long enough that he'll be back before that happens." Dick answered. "In the meantime he trained Batgirl, Robin and I, so we'll be available to help out whenever we can."

"You're Nightwing aren't you?" Gordon asked as realization struck him. Dick nodded in response. "Well at least we still have some remnants of the legacy of Batman in the meantime. Tell Batman when you see him that we all wish him a speedy recovery."

"Will do Commissioner." Dick responded before walking over to the ledge of the roof. "Is there anything else that you need?"

"Just to catch the son of a bitch that did this to Batman." Gordon stated as he gestured to the still disheveled rooftop.

"We're working on that Commissioner." Dick responded. A bolt of lightning lit up the sky for a moment and Gordon was distracted just long enough to give Dick the necessary time to leave unannounced. When the Commissioner looked back over at where Dick was standing he huffed before switching off the signal. "You've certainly got the disappearing act down." He said to no one before retreating back into the GCPD building.

~~ In the kitchen at the Manor ~~

"The man can be so difficult sometimes." Diana said as she absentmindedly stirred the sugar in her cup of tea.

"True, Master Bruce does have his faults Miss Diana." Alfred agreed. "But he always has a reason for everything that he does. Even though sometimes we might not understand the reason, it doesn't mean that it isn't a valid reason to him."

"I understand Alfred, I do." Diana replied. "I just wish that he would allow himself a few moments to relax. He's always paranoid and angry it seems. If it weren't for the fake smiles he wears while out in public, I doubt there'd be more than a handful of people that have seen him smile."

"I believe adding you to that list would make it six people my dear." Alfred half joked even though it was most likely a true statement.

Diana took a sip of her tea before lowering her head for a moment. "I doubt that's true Alfred." She replied. "I'd bet that his smile around me was fake as well. Until recently we never got along all that well as Batman and Wonder Woman."

"I think you're mistaken Miss." Alfred came back with a gentle hand on her shoulder. "In my time around Master Bruce, I've come to pick up on many of the intricate details as it were that reveal some of his emotions. There are certain areas where even Master Bruce can't hide."

"Such as?" She asked, now intently gazing into the older man's eyes to show her intrigue.

"Such as Master Bruce's fake smile versus the legitimate one." Alfred answered. "That is one of the easier things to pick up. When you have a moment, look into some of the public photos taken of Master Bruce at social events. Ones where you would be certain that he would rather be somewhere else. Then compare it to the next smile you receive from him. Look more so into Master Bruce's eyes Miss Diana. While small, there is a noticeable difference between the two. I also say this because it will serve as proof that you indeed are the sixth person to see Master Bruce actually smile."

"How do you pick up on so many things Alfred?" Diana asked.

"One does not live with the world's greatest detective and not pick up on some details Miss Diana." He explained before standing to taking both of their tea cups and place them into the dishwasher. "I think Master Bruce has had enough time to vent as it were."

~~ Master bedroom, ten minutes earlier ~~

Bruce was grimacing as he focused wholeheartedly on what he was trying to do. He was focused on his left hand at the moment. Finally he had gotten the whole hand to twitch, and he was determined to get back the use of his arms. Once Diana had left him alone, he began to move the fingers of his right hand. He had to move one finger at a time, but after days of no improvement at all, he was greatly encouraged by that revelation. He'd believed that his hand had moved to squeeze Diana's as she held it a few nights ago, but with no movement since then Bruce began to wonder if he'd just imagined that. By the time he moved over to his left hand, he had already been able to get his right arm to move outward. While he wasn't able to pick it up off the bed yet, he knew that in time he would also accomplish that task. But first he wanted to confirm how much movement he could perform, so he switched over to the left arm. It started off agonizingly slow at first as he could barely get a single finger to twitch, but slowly he was able to get responses from each finger. When he was able to get his thumb to respond as well, Bruce focused on clenching his hands into and out of fists.

Bruce switched back and forth between each hand as he struggled to do something that had come so natural to him only a few days ago. That frustration caused him to try even harder than before. Sweat began to bead up on his forehead as though he'd been lifting weights from the amount of effort he was putting into this little movement. Bruce felt incredibly weak thinking of how much effort it was taking to get his hands to respond. He wanted nothing more than to be able to hop out of bed and begin patrolling Gotham, but he hadn't even tried to get his legs to move yet. He knew that what Bane had done to him would have potentially done more damage to his lower body. There wasn't time to fret on what he might not be able to do however. He just wanted to focus on what he could do. With the amount of effort that Bruce was putting into moving his hands, it was beginning to take its toll on him. He was quickly running low on energy.

Bruce stopped trying to close both hands for a moment and closed his eyes to rest a bit. It was then that Diana happened to walk into the door with Alfred right behind her. She wondered for a moment if Bruce was sleeping and thought about turning around to let him rest until he opened his eyes and saw her. It was then that she noticed it. She saw what she deduced had been a genuine smile. Alfred was right, that there was a glimmer to his eyes that she'd never noticed from the pictures or even when she'd met Bruce Wayne at the charity. The smiles there never really reached his eyes. "It seems you're in a better mood now." She said, which prompted the smile to disappear, and Diana instantly regretted bringing it up at all.

"Yes." He responded. "I was wondering if you were coming back to go through more files."

Diana walked over to the side of the bed that she'd been sitting on each night, and once again gathered the pillows for support and the tablet PC before she settled in next to Bruce and helped Alfred to move Bruce's body in a more conducive position to view files together. Alfred also noticed the sweat on Bruce's forehead and wiped it away with a warm and damp washcloth. Once he was satisfied for the moment, he left the two of them alone to review files. Alfred had also noticed the smile on Bruce's face, and he knew that the smile wasn't because of Bruce seeing him, but Diana. The thought of Bruce finding happiness once again crept into the back of Alfred's mind, but he wouldn't allow those thoughts much credence due to previous experience. Perhaps though with Diana it could be different, and if not then perhaps he could do something himself to influence that outcome if he were to help Diana along the way in understanding how to get through to Bruce.

When Alfred closed the door behind him, Diana looked over at Bruce and noticed that he wasn't focusing on the tablet, but something else. She wondered for a moment if Bruce was still upset about Kal, but didn't want to bring it up, so she focused on work. "Just give me a moment to pull up the files where we last left..." Diana started.

Bruce interrupted her. "Diana, I need you to do something for me." He said.

"If I'm able to Bruce. What do you need?" She asked.

"I need you to take hold of my hand." He said.

Diana looked at him quizzically for a moment. "What do you need me to do that for?" She asked.

"Just humor me." He responded. "Please."

Diana had never heard Bruce say please before. Just that made her want to do as he requested. She didn't want to let a polite Bruce or Batman down if it were in her power. Grabbing Bruce's hand seemed easy enough to do anyways, and so she let the tablet PC rest on her thighs before reaching over and grabbing Bruce's right hand with her left. She casually set the two hands down on her lap before looking over at Bruce. "Okay, now what?" She asked. Bruce closed his eyes tightly for a moment and focused his concentration entirely on his hand, and then Diana felt it. Bruce's hand gently squeezing hers. She looked down at the hands joined together immediately upon feeling the sensation from his squeeze. While it wasn't much pressure at all, she could definitely feel it. She then changed her view from their hands together and turned to look Bruce in the eyes as he was now looking into hers. A smile spread across his lips, and she couldn't help but reciprocate the gesture. "I could feel that." She said in an almost whisper to him.

"So could I." He responded.


	24. Chapter 24: Meeting the Boys

"What do you mean complications?" Ra's al Ghul yelled at one of his subordinates. "We've been delayed a second week as it is. The world should be suffocating in volcanic ash by now."

"I'm sorry sire; the men are doing all that they can." The subordinate apologized. "We just need a few more days to ready transport for your safe trip sir."

"Your apologies do not make up for your failures." Ra's said as he sat down on his throne. "You've dishonored yourself and your men." Ra's pulled out a sword and handed it to the man. "You know what you need to do next as a result of your failures." Ra's sat back and watched as the man looked down at the sword that sat in his hands. He kneeled on the ground before Ra's and held out the handle of the sword so that the pointed end was against his own stomach. After closing his eyes and saying a silent prayer, the subordinate rammed the blade into his midsection. His aim was true enough that he quickly bled to death. Ra's turned towards his servant. "Ubu, bring me Bane and my daughter."

Ra's' servant bowed and left to retrieve the requested guests for his master. Ra's didn't have to wait long before Bane arrived followed shortly thereafter by Talia. When they both were standing before him, he addressed them. "Talia, tell me again of your findings regarding the detective." He ordered.

"Father I visited the detective, and he was severely injured as a result of Bane's attack." She answered.

Ra's then looked over to Bane. "You said that you broke the detective." He stated. When Bane nodded in agreement to that assessment, Ra's continued. "Then tell me Bane. Why is it that some of my colleagues are hearing news of the detective being seen as recently as two nights ago?"

"There's no way that he could have healed so quickly." Bane said as he was astounded to have heard this. "I felt his bones breaking, I swear it."

"You will confirm these reports and return to base with your findings." Ra's ordered. "For your sake I certainly hope these reports are false. We need no more delays, and if the detective has not been removed from the equation then we will have to find a way to divert his attention from our activities before moving forward."

Talia stayed and watched as Bane left the room before she turned and approached her father. "You must believe me father." She said. "I was right next to my beloved. I know that he was unable to even lift a finger. This must be an imposter."

"Even so daughter, we have to be absolutely certain that the detective isn't out there finding ways to complicate my plans. He cannot be allowed to interfere."

~~ Watchtower ~~

Diana had been feeling differently ever since that night where she'd felt Bruce's hand squeeze on her own. When that occurred, she couldn't help but to call out to Alfred and relay the good news. She couldn't put her finger on what it was, but she knew that something had changed within her. Even if she were to doubt it, any doubts would have been laid to rest by her teammate Shayera. Shayera had quickly picked up on the change and teased her about it for days. When Diana asked what was so different, Shayera merely stated that it looked like Diana had a spring in her step. Diana didn't understand what that meant, and that is when Shayera began to tease her. She decided to disregard it and act as though everything were normal. She also wanted to go down and check on Bruce's progress, but hadn't been able to since that night as her time was consumed with League business. The volcanic activity hadn't shown any signs of slowing yet, and there were still aftershocks to contend with as well. Evacuations were almost a daily occurrence for the League to help with as well as forest fires and other natural disasters as of a result of the volcanic activities. The League had pulled together all of the information on Ra's al Ghul, and were investigating what the man was up to, but to this point they had come up empty. They couldn't find any possible motive as to his end goal aside from what Bruce had informed them about in the past when he'd confronted Ra's before.

While Diana wasn't able to find enough free time to go down to visit personally, she did have a couple moments during monitor duty where she called in to Alfred and received updates. Alfred had told her that Dr. Leslie's visits had gone well, and Bruce was making great strides in his recovery. He was already sitting up under his own power, and they were going to set him up with a wheelchair so that he could do more than just be in the master bedroom. The only negative was that Bruce's legs were still unresponsive, but what Dr. Tompkins had seen during her last checkup provided some tentative hope that Bruce would fully recover from this one day.

~~ Wayne Manor ~~

Bruce had wanted to delve right into working on leads on Ra's al Ghul's plans, but he had to take things one day at a time. While he could sit up on his own, his fingers still didn't react as quickly as they used to. That made typing information problematic as Bruce's impatience would tend to rear its ugly head at times. He'd broken one tablet PC in a frustrated moment because of his hands not obeying his commands. In order to compensate for that, Alfred had ordered a voice command activated tablet PC to replace the destroyed older model. When it arrived, Barbara came over and linked it to the Batcave computer so that Bruce could get more work done.

He was greatly frustrated that he couldn't travel to the Batcave yet. Alfred, Dick, and Tim were still in the process of retrofitting it so that he could use a wheelchair to travel to certain areas of the cave such as the computers and test labs. Once that was complete, Bruce planned to watch during patrol mic'd up so that he could discuss things with the Batclan more effectively. That desire only grew when Tim and Barbara returned with some evidence of the Joker becoming active in the city once again. They all knew that it was only a matter of time before he'd pop up again. Bruce would never be able to rest easily when the Joker still was loose in the city. That clown seemed to haunt Bruce's thoughts any chance that he could, and he wasn't even aware of it. Of course Bruce still refused any help from the League, citing that their duties were to protect the whole world, not just Gotham and he had a team of capable replacements already patrolling the city. Never mind the fact that Bruce just didn't want Meta humans in his city. He'd already seen the results of a normal human defending Gotham, and it literally frightened him to even ponder what Gotham would create in return if a Meta were to begin protecting it from evil. It was Superman that had become angry during a conversation with Bruce about watching over Gotham. Bruce's adamant refusal had left Clark frustrated as he just couldn't understand why Bruce wouldn't be willing to accept help when it was seemingly so very needed. Bruce could only imagine that if evil such as the Joker, Two-Face, Penguin, Scarecrow and numerous others seemed to appear just after Batman began to take control of the crime in Gotham what creature or being would rise up if Superman were to intervene. Such a being would be unthinkable and Bruce would never want something like that to be in Gotham, the city he vowed to protect. Clark would just have to accept that he didn't belong in Gotham.

After Alfred had brought up lunch for Bruce, he began some physical therapy. He was determined to get back whatever motor skills he could as quickly as possible. On the list of things that he performed would normally be thought of as simple tasks for a person to perform. He had some hand held devices to squeeze repeatedly for a specific number of repetitions between hands. No large amounts of weight were permitted at the time due to his still mending back. He wasn't even allowed to lift his own body weight so that he could move into a wheelchair and just get out of his bed on his own. Bruce had actually begun to hate having to ask Alfred for things. That would have seemed a foreign thought to him just a couple of weeks ago. Now he'd even enjoy the possibility of making himself something to eat even though he had no clue how to cook. Perhaps while he was recovering he'd try and pick up some cooking skills from Alfred. He wouldn't have anything other than recovering to distract him from paying attention to the details that Alfred would provide. Maybe he could try something that Alfred had deemed simple, like making spaghetti again. The last time it had turned out to be a horrible idea as Bruce wasn't even able to cook the noodles properly.

Bruce was then brought out of his reverie as Alfred once again entered the bedroom. "I'm sorry to interrupt sir, but a guest has arrived." Alfred said.

"I thought we discussed that when Diana shows up, you would just show her in." Bruce said as he knew of no other visitors that would come in to see Bruce without showing themselves in.

"I'm sorry sir, but Miss Diana is not the one who has arrived." Alfred responded.

"Well then who is it Alfred?" Bruce asked.

"Miss Kyle sir." Alfred answered. "She insisted upon seeing you sir as she happened to run into your son late last night."

Bruce then remembered Dick coming back from patrol and mentioning that he'd run into Selina. She'd quickly deduced that Dick wasn't Batman, but still had returned the Bastet Amulet regardless. And since Bruce hadn't read about chaos running rampant through the city, which had meant Selina had also refrained from letting the cat out of the bag about Batman being injured. "Send her in Alfred." Bruce requested.

Alfred disappeared and showed Selina into the bedroom. He was less than pleased that Selina had shown up. She'd been a heart breaking relationship waiting to happen to Bruce, and he didn't want to see his surrogate son be put through that when it was plain to see from his perspective. Selina walked confidently up to Bruce before sitting down next to him on the bed. Bruce worked carefully to join her in a more seated position. He took a deep exhaustive breath from the effort that it took to sit up before looking over into his guests eyes. "I'm surprised to see you here Selina." Bruce said.

"I'm surprised to see you in bed Bruce." Selina responded before gently grazing the back of her hand across his chest. "Well…. At least at this hour that is." She finished.

"Thank you for returning the amulet." Bruce responded as he wondered just what Selina wanted.

"Well, it is better than the alternative Bruce." She replied. "I'm sure you would've sent junior to come after me eventually if I hadn't, but I didn't come here to talk shop Bruce."

"What is it then?" Bruce asked.

"I came to see how seriously you've been hurt Bruce." Selina answered. "It had to be serious if you had Nightwing taking over for you."

"That was his decision." Bruce responded. "It was a calculated risk that he took, and judging from the numbers it was a well placed choice that he made. Lower level criminals are less bold when they believe that Batman is still out there."

"That may be true, but eventually someone will find out he isn't you." Selina stated.

"Batman can be anyone." Bruce replied. "That was the point of Batman. That a man can choose to take a stand against crime and corruption in Gotham. Nightwing knows that, and that is why he decided to use the mantel of the Batman."

"I see your point Bruce, but it just won't be the same if it isn't you out there." Selina said in a somber tone before she stood and walked over to a window and looked out of it at the city that stood behind a tree line.

Bruce watched her standing in front of the large window with the saddened look on her face. "It won't always be me Selina." He said. "Even if I ever do come back from this, there still will be a time that I can't continue being Batman. Either from old age, or another criminal, maybe even the same man will take me down again and I won't be able to fight again. That's part of the risk that I accepted when I chose to become Batman."

Selina looked over at Bruce with a tear falling from one of her eyes. She'd never thought of Batman as vulnerable, or that he'd one day be gone completely. "I hope I don't have to see that day ever come." She said quietly through a cracking and emotional voice. She walked back over to the bed and sat in front of Bruce once more. She lifted a hand and cupped his cheek before leaning in and placing a kiss against his lips. Bruce returned the kiss before Selina pulled away. She wiped the tear from her face and smiled at him. "Come back stronger than ever Bruce. Until you do, I'll do my best to help the kids keep Gotham in line."

Bruce couldn't help but to smile. He knew that Selina had a good heart. She'd just lived such a rough life growing up that she'd learned ways to survive on her own. While those means of survival weren't legal, she still was a good person inside, and it was that person in which Bruce had once hoped he could bring out to the forefront. Unfortunately he could never seem to do that on his own. How ironic it was that this critical injury from Bane would be the cause of Catwoman reforming. Bruce reached out and touched Selina's face softly with his hand. She put her hand over top of his and leaned into his touch while closing her eyes. After a few moments of silence, she released his hand and stood back up. Once again she had some tears to wipe from her face. "Next time be sure to take better care of yourself Bruce." She said. "Even as stubborn and arrogant as you are, some of us actually like having you around. It'd be a shame if you were to leave us behind too early."

Downstairs Alfred met Dick, who had stopped by to pick up Tim from school. Alfred warned the two boys about the unscheduled guest in Bruce's room, so they each opted to head to the Batcave instead of checking on Bruce first. Dick figured that Selina would stop by sooner rather than later due to running into her on the rooftops. He'd told both Barbara and Tim about his meeting up with Catwoman, and they too assumed that she would be stopping by at some point. Dick was going to reach out to Barbara so that she wouldn't be caught off guard from Selina's appearance as well. They went back to work on setting up wheelchair ramps for Bruce to stall for time until Selina left. Then they would head up to check on Bruce and grab some dinner before heading out on patrol. Dick was pleased that wearing the Batsuit had created the effect on the criminal element that he'd hoped. He wasn't comfortable wearing the suit that a man he grew up idolizing had worn. It felt like there was a shadow hovering over him while he was in that costume. There was a giant weight that came along with being Batman, and Dick had successfully set up his own identity apart from Batman. He didn't want to lose that because of how much he fought to create that image for himself. Perhaps in time, Tim would be ready and willing to step into the shadow of becoming Batman, but Dick didn't want it.

Dick and Tim just finished setting up a ramp that would enable Bruce to reach the laboratory when an alarm began to sound. Each of the boys looked over to the computer screens and saw that an incoming transport was being issued for the cave. They had just enough time to glance over at the person being transported and make themselves scarce, but when they saw who it was, they only stood and faced the platform. Slowly a female figure appeared before them in a white light that finally revealed Wonder Woman. She wasn't in her uniform. Bruce had asked her not to wear it if her intentions were to leave the cave and head into the manner. She was wearing jeans and a white t-shirt. She had her hair pulled back into a tight pony tail, and was wearing glasses. Her bracelets still made it impossible not to know that it was Wonder Woman though. She smiled when she saw the two young protégés of Bruce's standing there watching her. It was like they were standing guard, and Diana couldn't help but to respect them both. "Wonder Woman." They both said in unison.

"Please, call me Diana." She responded as she approached them both before sticking out her hand to Dick. "You must be Dick Grayson and Tim Drake. Bruce has spoken very highly of each of you."

Dick and Tim looked at each other stunned by what they'd heard. Dick eventually shook Diana's extended hand before he found his voice long enough to respond. "Umm, yeah." He said. "That's Tim, and I'm Dick. It's nice to finally meet you…Diana."

As soon as Dick let go of Diana's hand, Tim was quick to latch onto it before Diana could have pulled it away. "It's an honor to meet you Wonder….err Diana." Tim said as he shook Diana's hand energetically. "What brings you here?"

"I actually came by to see if I could be of any assistance with Bruce's physical therapy." She answered. "Alfred called me and told me how much of a struggle it's been for him to help Bruce move around much, and I wanted to help if I could."

A smirk started to sprout up on Dick's face upon hearing Diana's answer. He knew the old man better than anyone aside from Bruce, and he could tell that Alfred was putting his hands on Bruce's relationship with the Amazon. Apparently, Alfred liked Diana, and if he thought there was a chance for Bruce to find love and happiness, then the faithful surrogate father would dabble enough to provide Bruce opportunities for reaching out and possibly finding happiness. Then it dawned on Dick that Bruce was upstairs with Selina still. Even though it was most likely completely innocent, Selina was not the type of woman that Diana should run into when Bruce was involved. Selina knew every trick in the book, and if she felt any threat to Bruce wanting to be with someone else, then she certainly would use those tricks to her advantage. While Diana had been in man's world for some time now, she had no knowledge about competing for a man's affection, especially like Selina did. Suddenly, an idea came to Dick as Diana was approaching the bottom of the stairs that led to the Manor. "Actually Diana, we could use your help if you could spare a few minutes." Dick started, which caused Diana to stop in her tracks so that she could hear what he had to say. "You see, we're building these ramps for Bruce so that he can get down here with a wheel chair until he starts walking again. I'm sure you know that with Bruce, the sooner he gets to the cave, the sooner his stubbornness will take over and get him back out there even more quickly."

Diana believed what Dick said would be true. If Bruce were able to get down to the Batcave and see everything down there that made him Batman, it couldn't do anything but to help keep the fire lit for him to recover as quickly as possible. As much as she'd have hated to believe the thought possible in as little as a month ago, she found that she actually missed seeing Batman on the Watchtower. Even the annoying facets that would usually rear their ugly heads. "Just tell me what I can do to help." She offered as she turned back to help the two young men complete their construction project.

Dick was glad that Diana went along with the diversion. With her strength and ability to fly, they would have the ramps all built in no time. While they worked, Diana was full of questions for each of the two young men. She was insatiable with the amount of information that she wanted to figure out about how they'd come to meet Bruce and how they'd managed to work alongside Batman in his own city. From that, Diana believed for a moment that if one didn't experience an incredibly traumatic event that Bruce wouldn't allow them to be in Gotham. Dick quickly pointed out the Batgirl origin to correct that line of thinking. Diana enjoyed all the things she was learning about Bruce and his new family. Each of them showed a strength of will that could only be rivaled by Bruce himself. That seemed to be the common theme amongst them all. Dick and Tim had experienced tragedy that only helped tie them to Bruce even more.

Time seemed to fly by, as before any of them knew it, the ramps were all completed and it was nearly time to head out on patrol. Diana saw Dick hesitate before he approached the Batsuit to change into it. "Do you not want to get into the Batman suit Dick?" She asked.

Dick stopped in his tracks, but didn't turn to face her. His shoulders slumped slightly with a sigh that escaped his lips. "No Diana." He answered. "I don't."

"But why?" She asked. "I would have thought wearing a great champion's armor such as Batman's would be an honor."

"It's a burden more than an honor." Dick responded as he turned to face her. "I'll never be Bruce, Diana. He makes Batman the man that he is. Both to criminals and the innocent."

"Then why go out in that armor instead of your own?" She wondered aloud.

"It's a necessary evil." Dick replied.

"I'm afraid I don't understand." Diana responded.

"The mantle of Batman is based on fear Diana." Dick explained after turning to look upon the Batsuit. "Criminals in Gotham are scared to death of crossing Batman. That's part of the reason behind Bruce forbidding Meta human's from helping in the city. If he loses the element of fear with criminals and they realize that Batman is just a man, then they'll get more violent. Perhaps they'd even get violent enough to go after Bruce and take him out. They can come to the same conclusion from seeing that Batman can be hurt too."

"So that's why you're going out as Batman instead of Nightwing." Diana stated. "So that Bruce's image will remain in the criminal element's mind, and to help protect Bruce by making certain that the fear doesn't waver."

"You nailed it." Dick responded. "If Batman isn't feared, then he's just a man in a costume. And a man in a costume can be overcome or even killed. We need every edge that we can get in this fight."

With that, Diana was able to gain a better understanding of why Bruce maintained the persona that he did while under the cape and cowl. She knew now that it was to help him seem superhuman in a way even though he didn't possess true super powers. Fear alone could help one find their way to victory, and Bruce had mastered the ability to instill fear in the low lives of Gotham. She'd even seen him use that fear on other parts of the world before on League missions. But thinking of Bruce then brought her back to the original reason she'd come in the first place. She glanced back over to the staircase to see Alfred making his way down with a tray in his hands. He was taken by surprise to see her there as she hadn't been expected. He let the faintest of smiles grace his lips for a second before his training took control of his facial features and returned his look to one of indifference. Alfred walked up to the three of them before setting the tray to the side. "Master Dick, Master Timothy." Alfred stated. "Dinner is prepared for you. Also, Miss Barbara telephoned to state that she would be joining you in the city this evening."

"Thanks Alfred." Tim said while lifting the tray cover up to go over what Alfred had prepared.

Alfred then turned to face Diana. "Good evening Miss." He said.

"Good evening Alfred." Diana responded. "I don't suppose Bruce is available this evening?"

"It happens by chance that Master Bruce's evening is rather light." Alfred answered before offering his arm. "Please do follow me Miss Diana. I would be more than delighted to escort you to him."

Diana placed her hand in the crook of Alfred's arm before saying her farewells to Tim and Dick. She then walked with Alfred up the stairs and into the Manor. The boys quickly scarfed down the food before changing into the Batman and Robin suits. Within minutes they were in the Batmobile and heading for the streets of Gotham at breakneck speed. They wanted to get hold of Joker and return him to Gotham before Bruce became too stressed out about the clown traipsing about the city. They also wanted to be able to switch gears to Ra's al Ghul, and how to stop Bane. Even though they agreed to steer away from the masked man if they came across him, there was still vengeance on each of their minds.

As Diana walked up to the bedroom with Alfred, she picked up on a scent that she didn't recognize from her times before. It was a distinctly female scent. She recalled smelling something similar while walking through a mall as she sought to learn more about the women of man's world. She wondered if that Talia had returned wearing a perfume. Diana's blood began to boil at the thought of that woman being left alone with Bruce. "Did Bruce have a visitor today?" She asked Alfred.

"One of Master Bruce's former friendly acquaintances did stop by for a time to visit Miss." Alfred answered honestly. "You need not worry Miss Diana. While Miss Kyle is aware of Master Bruce's dual lives, she's never given up such information."

Diana then wondered how this Miss Kyle was able to become aware of Bruce's dual identities, but on second thought, she no longer cared. Diana just wanted to help Bruce recover, and after working with Tim and Dick, she also wanted to take him down to the cave so that they could see what else would need to be done to prepare it for Bruce on a wheelchair. Gotham needed him, and the League needed him. Something was just missing if he weren't in the equation, and Diana wanted that to change if she could help it. If she had any say in it, helping Bruce to recover would be exactly what she would do.


	25. Chapter 25: Wiggle

Everything seemed quiet in the streets of Gotham this night. Dick was again patrolling in the Batman suit. It seemed that his patrolling as the Dark Knight had worked so far. In Dick's mind though there was a lingering doubt. It had worked too well. In the two hours he'd been out, he only came across one attempted carjacking. That just wasn't how Gotham worked, even on a slow night. It gave him an extremely uneasy feeling deep inside that something big was going to happen, and with Bruce not able to be involved, he wondered if he was actually up to the task. He knew that he would have to be and shook off any lingering doubt before he continued on his path through the rooftops of Gotham. He'd eventually find something. Gotham simply couldn't stay this quiet all night long.

Meanwhile Robin and Batgirl were scouring the warehouse district. They were looking for any signs that would give them clues as to where the Joker was hiding out. They too had run across a somewhat slow night. Barbara interrupted two attempted muggings with the help of Tim as backup. He was working diligently to ready himself for the increased workload that he just knew he would need to take on until Bruce could join the Batclan once again. Tim had no doubts that Bruce would overcome this obstacle somehow. He'd studied all the forensic science that he could in his spare time apart from school, homework, and training. He knew that even with Bruce's injury, if he allowed his grades to drop then Bruce would strip him of being Robin, and that was simply something he refused to give up on. Tim always fell back to his reasoning of Batman needing a Robin to serve as an anchor and help keep him grounded. Dick had done wonderful as the first incarnation of Robin. He'd set quite the example to follow. The second Robin Jason had started off strongly, but somewhere along the lines he'd seemed to have forgotten to follow Bruce's lead and had ended up getting himself killed in the process. Bruce held onto extreme guilt from that point on and he changed. As Tim had idolized the duo of Batman and Robin, it didn't take him long to notice the subtle changes in Batman. He became more violent in how he restrained criminals, and he'd beaten Joker to within an inch of his life on more than one occasion. It was at that point Tim had decided that Batman needed to have a Robin at his side, and he began his research based from that point in time. Now that he was so close to fulfilling that role himself, he wasn't about to let that go.

Tim was brought out of his reverie from the call on the communicator. "Batgirl, Robin." Came the voice of Nightwing. "Sit rep."

"All's quiet on this end." Barbara answered in an almost whisper. "We haven't found any new leads to go off of yet either."

"Let's rendezvous at one of the Gotham National Banks." Dick responded. "I'm sending you the coordinates now." As soon as the coordinates were received, the two Batclan members took off in that general direction.

~~ Wayne Manor ~~

Diana had stayed with Bruce that whole evening. After Alfred had gotten Bruce to eat his dinner, both he and Diana worked to get Bruce settled into his wheelchair for the first time. Diana of course did most of the lifting while Alfred made sure the wheelchair was in a good position for Bruce to be seated. While he could sit up now, he still wasn't supposed to sit at a 90 degree angle yet, and he wasn't supposed to propel himself or stay seated for more than a few minutes a day. After a few days of that, Leslie would reevaluate his rehab. Bruce was never one to follow someone else's orders, but a glare from Diana when he reached for the wheels to push himself forward was enough to get him to cease with that train of thought for the moment. When he was securely seated, Diana offered to take Bruce out of his bedroom. He'd been cooped up there for a couple of weeks, and she was happy that she would get to be the one to show him out and thus reveal a substantial amount of progress in his healing. She was up for anything that would help to keep Bruce motivated and focused on recovering.

Diana took him down to the main floor of the Manor, and once there Bruce requested to be taken to the study. Once in the study, Bruce had her stop him while facing the fireplace, and above that was a portrait of two people. Diana realized instantly that it was a portrait of Bruce's parents. She watched as he sat there quietly looking at the portrait. In looking at the two people, Diana saw so much of Bruce's father in his features, but his eyes were clearly from his mother. She then glanced down at Bruce to look for more comparisons when she noticed that he had a troubled look on his face, and seemed to be thinking intently about something. After a couple of minutes, Bruce placed his hands on the wheels of his wheelchair and pushed forward out of Diana's loose grasp on the chair handles. He continued to stare intently at the portrait as Diana watched. He clearly wanted to have a few moments it seemed, and Diana stayed back allowing him his space. She didn't like the deep hurt that was so prevalent on his face. All this time, as Bruce as well as Batman, he'd remained as though he were made of stone. He'd never revealed such emotion aside from anger before while in front of her. Diana wondered if Bruce was even aware of what he was showing in front of her. She knew from her research that Bruce's parents were murdered when he was just a child, and she figured that could have been one of the reasons he'd chosen to take on the life of a vigilante hero. As she watched Bruce sitting there staring at that portrait, she knew that he had been apologizing to his parents before down in the cave when he'd believed his days as Batman had come to an end. She knew that Bruce had more to offer than just his body, but she wondered if he would see it that way as well. She certainly hoped that he would and decide not to give up completely if by chance his legs didn't function in the future. "Take me down to the cave Diana." Bruce said suddenly which startled her. "Please."

The word please took her completely by surprise. It wasn't just the word though that caught her attention, but the tone of Bruce's voice. He reached a tone that seemed so utterly depressed and defeated. She felt her heart breaking for him and wanted to reach out and offer comfort in any way that she could. "Certainly Bruce." She said as she moved back behind him and wheeled him in the direction of the grandfather clock entrance.

As they entered the entrance, Bruce noticed immediately the changes that had been done. He had an elevator that allowed him to bypass the stairs and once down into the cave, he saw all of the ramps and changes that had been made. Dick and Tim had obviously worked very hard to have all of this set up so that Bruce could go anywhere he wished in the cave. Had it not been such a depressing situation, Bruce would've greatly appreciated what his sons had done for him, and even still he felt a little better about his current condition because of what they'd done. Diana took him around all of the areas that had been altered for Bruce to have access to before ending at the place where Bruce had spent the majority of his time as Batman, in front of the Cray super computer. Displayed on the screen was a map of the city with three icons slowly moving around. It was obvious that the icons represented Tim, Dick, and Barbara. Bruce watched the screen intently for a few moments before Alfred's voice interrupted them. "I'm terribly sorry sir, but we've already exceeded Dr. Leslie's orders on your time in the wheelchair." Alfred said apologetically.

Diana sighed at the same time Bruce did. Neither one wanted to leave as Bruce wanted to watch over his adopted bat family, and Diana only wanted to provide Bruce with hope that he was still an intricate part of something special and worth fighting for. She reluctantly turned the chair around and pushed him back down the ramp and over to the elevator where Alfred was waiting. She could tell that the butler didn't wish to force Bruce to leave either, but he knew that he had to do what was in his surrogate son's best interests.

~~ Gotham rooftops ~~

_Batman_ landed on the rooftop he'd chosen to meet up with Batgirl and Robin earlier that night. He'd been much more careful about these meetings after what had happened to both him and Bruce on that horrible night weeks ago. Dick watched all of his surroundings, and when he felt comfortable enough, he landed on the rooftop. Batgirl and Robin landed a few minutes later as they huddled together to discuss what had happened so far that night. Dick went over what he'd come across during his patrol, and was about to head back out when a loud thud was heard from the other side of the rooftop. All three members of the Batclan spun around in the direction of the sound in a defensive stance, ready to strike against any transgressor. It was then that Dick's greatest concern was met as the masked man was once again approaching him and his team.

"So, I see that the Batman is back to scurrying about the rooftops, but is it really the Batman?" Bane said as he approached.

"What are you doing here?" Dick responded in his most menacing voice.

"Only to confirm that my work was completed already." Bane answered. "And now I see that I was successful in breaking the bat as I believed. You discredit your master by wearing his suit. Even though he was no match for me, you were not even close to the challenge that he presented. Allow me to rectify your dishonor by removing you from your master's suit."

Bane took that opportunity and charged at the three Batclan members. Dick threw down some smoke pellets as the team dispersed to avoid the large masked man's attack. Dick was furious with Bane. He'd seriously hurt Bruce, and he wanted to exact some justice on the large man, but he knew from his previous encounter that he wouldn't fare much better than before. Dick silently signaled by touch to his two teammates in directions to escape as they all disappeared behind the smoke. Bane was making his way through the smoke in search of any member of the Batclan that he could latch onto, and after a few moments he heard the sound of a single grapple gun firing, followed shortly after that by another. There was no third shot fired though. One Batclan member remained on the rooftop. Bane cracked his knuckles in anticipation as the smoke finally began to clear. Before visibility was good enough, Bane was at the receiving end of a jumping back heel kick to the face. The blast knocked him back a couple of steps, and he shook his head momentarily to regain his bearings a little bit. When he looked up again, Bane could see clearly that the man in the Batman suit was the one that stayed behind. "You should have followed your own instructions." Bane sneered as he got into a fighting stance. "Now I will leave you with a worse fate than that of your master."

"Shut up and fight." Dick seethed before launching into another series of attacks. He started off with a simple jab that was more of a feint than anything, and followed that with a front kick that was aimed at Bane's knees. A side step caused the kick to hit nothing but air. Undeterred, Dick pulled out weaponry from his own arsenal in Escrima sticks. He twirled them around briefly before striking Bane repeatedly on any opening he could find. His attacks were enough to continue knocking Bane backwards, and eventually to one knee before the masked man was able to strike Dick hard in the chest, which provided him with some separation.

"You're leading with your anger, yet you control it to a point that keeps you from becoming sloppy." Bane said as he wiped his forearm across his face as if he were wiping blood from his mouth. "That's admirable, but you are still foolish to be here instead of fleeing." Bane returned to a standing position, and Dick noticed the masked man place both hands together, one on top of the other. He thought he saw a motion that looked as if Bane had turned a dial of some sort before he returned to a fighting stance. Dick charged again, but when he swung his Escrima sticks this time, Bane moved to block and the force of his block caused the sticks to break against Bane's forearms. Dick was stunned by what he saw. His Escrima sticks should have broken bones before they would break. He didn't have much time to think about that though as Bane charged into the battle now being the aggressor. He swung wildly at first and Dick was able to dodge each swing, but he knew that it was only a matter of time before he'd miss one shot. Sure enough Bane was able to land not one but two strikes on Dick. The first hit Dick in the midsection, which knocked the wind out of him instantly, and the second strike was a knee to Dick's face that sent his body tumbling onto his back.

Dick was groggy from the two strikes. The screen from the lenses in his cowl were cracked and malfunctioning. He wouldn't be able to go through the various forms of enhanced vision and had to rely on his own eye sight from that point on. He also felt like he'd been hit by a freight train face first. Before he could clear his head to focus on his attacker, Bane reached down and latched onto his throat, pulling him up off the rooftop and leaving his feet dangling in the air. Dick swung a kick that connected with Bane just under his extended arm. It was a hard kick and made good contact, but Bane barely flinched from the contact. He merely squeezed more tightly around Dick's throat. He knew he was in deep trouble then. Dick tried to focus on what form of weaponry he had at his disposal that could possibly get him free, and in a move of calculated desperation, he pulled out a razor edged batarang before slamming it into the wrist of the hand that was around his neck. He then quickly followed with a taser and placed it directly against the batarang before discharging the maximum amount of electric current. Those two moves caused Bane to slacken his grip, but not release it. The suit was able to protect Dick from the voltage going through Bane's arm, which allowed Dick the ability to still move. Dick then pulled out his grapple and fired away. He quickly hit the retract button, and the force of that was enough to free his neck from Bane's grasp.

Dick didn't have much time to react as he was quickly approaching the wall that his grapple had latched onto. He hit the release button, and began to plummet down as gravity had latched onto him. He only waited a second or two before engaging the gliding action of Batman's cape to slow his descent. Upon landing he tumbled and rolled back onto his feet. Dick then looked up at the rooftop to see Bane staring down at him. He wasted little time in heading in the other direction so as to create some distance between Bane and himself. He had only now confirmed that Bane was a force to be reckoned with, and a force that he had little chance of defeating on his own until he'd had enough time to find some sort of weakness to exploit. For now, he knew that he needed to catch back up to Barbara and Tim. None of them would be able to patrol alone from this point on with Bane obviously on the hunt for them.

~~ Back at the Manor ~~

Diana had helped Alfred get Bruce back comfortably into his bed once again. Bruce had grumbled the whole way back up from the Batcave to the Manor. He was certainly going to be a handful in the coming weeks for Alfred, especially if no one were to be there to help the faithful butler. When Bruce was settled in, Diana sat next to him and returned to going over more League files on Ra's al Ghul while Alfred left them to make some coffee. Not long after Alfred left, Bruce had once again gone silent, and his face took on a look that was close to how she'd seen him earlier that night while he was in the study staring at his parent's portrait. He reached up and slowly closed the laptop before handing it to Diana. "What is it Bruce?" Diana asked.

"I'm done Diana." He answered.

"What do you mean?" She asked quickly as concern began to grow within her voice.

"I….I don't know if you'd understand." He responded.

Diana reached across her body with her right hand to cup Bruce's cheek and turn his face towards her so that she knew he would be looking at her. "Then explain it do me until I do." She requested.

Bruce gazed into her eyes for a moment, almost looking for the words he wanted to say next. In her eyes he noticed something else there. At first he wasn't sure what it was, only that there was something else that her eyes held. It was compassion that he saw, and he knew that she was willing to listen to whatever he had to say with an open mind. He took a deep breath in his nose and released it out of his mouth before he started to speak. "I know that you're aware of my parents being murdered when I was just a boy." He started and at Diana's nodding in confirmation he continued. "It….it happened in front of me. I don't understand why I lived and they didn't. My father would have given that thug anything he'd asked for, but even that wasn't enough to keep the man from taking both of them that night. For years, I blamed myself."

"Bruce, you were just a boy." Diana responded. "How could you have done anything to have changed the outcome?"

"I realize that now." Bruce replied. "After a year of guilt over what I could've or should've done differently, I made a vow to honor them. I would do whatever it took until I couldn't any more to stop the crime in Gotham. I wanted to ensure that no other child had to endure the cruelty that I went through all those years ago."

Hearing Bruce's words provided Diana with more details about what drove the man to become Batman, and she only gestured for him to continue. She didn't want to stop him from sharing because she never knew if he'd open up like this again. It almost seemed as though he'd never spoken like this to anyone else before.

"I spent years training in various tactics that I knew I'd need to keep with my promise." He continued. "It's in their memory that I do what I….That I did what I did as Batman." He corrected himself and Diana saw the defeat laced with guilt in his eyes.

"Bruce, you've done more for this city than any one man could ever be asked to do." Diana tried to offer as encouragement. "Now is not the time for giving in. You may have to alter your plans, but you can still do enough to continue honoring your vow to your parents."

Bruce sat beside her quietly for a few minutes. Diana kept her eyes focused on him, but she too remained quiet. She wanted him to process what she'd said to him. He was depressed about his newfound physical limitations, and perhaps an outside perspective would provide him with the initiative to not give in. Bruce then lowered his view to right in front of his lap. "Thank you." He whispered.

"For what?" Diana asked.

"I know you and Batman haven't gotten along well, and I hid my secret identity from you." Bruce said. "I wouldn't have been surprised if you chose to leave me here to waste away based on how I've treated and deceived you, and I couldn't have blamed you if you did that. You've gone above and beyond in helping me. I just wanted to make sure you knew that I appreciated what you've done for me."

"Actually, I did it all for Alfred." Diana teased before turning serious again. "You're welcome Bruce. And if it's any consolation for you, I'm no longer angry with you for hiding your identity from me. Kal explained to me once that the only reason he knew was because of his x-ray vision. Besides, it gave me a chance to get to know both sides of you without any preconceived notions about who you are. I'm honored that we have the chance to remain friends."

"Me too." Bruce responded even though the last of what she'd said had stung him for some reason. At that moment Alfred walked in the door with coffee in hand for the two of them. He also informed Bruce that the Batmobile was making its way back to the cave, which meant that patrol had ended. Looking up at a clock on the wall, Bruce realized that it was quite early for even a slow night to end. He knew Dick wouldn't cut patrol short unless it was something important. Bruce gave Alfred a look that told the older man that he would be defying doctor's orders and returning to the cave. His eyes then set onto Diana, and she too figured out what Bruce was saying without him even having to open his mouth to speak. Any arguments would have meant that they both would have to tie Bruce down to keep him in the bed, and he'd still likely find a way to escape from his confines. Instead of fighting an unwinnable battle, she chose to help Bruce back onto the wheelchair, and once he was set, she led him back down to the cave.

They didn't have to wait long for the Batmobile and Batcycle to pull into the cave. Tim was on the bike and quickly distanced himself from the Batmobile. Diana couldn't be sure, but her Meta hearing picked up what sounded like an argument before the hatch slid open on the Batmobile. It was then that her suspicions were confirmed.

"You were so beyond stupid Dick!" Barbara yelled as both she and Dick climbed out of the car. "I don't care what you say, you weren't thinking at all!"

"I told you already Babs, I was just trying to give Tim and you a chance to get clear!" Dick fired back. "I wasn't trying to actually…"

"What happened?!" Bruce yelled interrupting Dick. All three members of the Batclan jumped in shock from the sound of Bruce's voice booming throughout the cave.

Dick's throat suddenly became dry as he tried to swallow down the lump that had instantly become stuck there. He removed the cowl to reveal the blood trickling down and showing that he'd received a broken nose. Dick tossed the cowl towards Alfred while he rubbed the back of his neck, trying to come up with the words to tell Bruce. "The lenses are busted Alfred. I think that cowl is toast." He said before turning his eyes back towards his mentor and adopted father.

"What….Happened?" Bruce asked again in a low and menacing voice. Diana had never heard Bruce's voice sound like that before, and she visibly flinched upon hearing it before she looked down at the man sitting in his wheelchair just in front of her. Was this one of the tactics he used while interrogating his enemies?

Dick knew that there was no avoiding or dancing around the topic based off of Bruce's demeanor. If Bruce could walk, he'd have Dick pinned against one of the cave walls and already have begun interrogating him for answers. Dick sighed and looked at the ground just before his feet as his hands dropped to his sides. "Bane happened." He answered.

Bruce's eyes widened for a moment before his face set back into an emotionless expression. "And you confronted him." He stated. It wasn't a question, but Dick nodded his head in confirmation as if to erase any doubt. "Why?" Bruce asked.

"He appeared on a rooftop where the three of us were." Dick responded. "I wasn't intending on fighting him. I just wanted to keep him busy long enough so that Babs and Tim could get away."

"He could've killed you Dick." Bruce returned. "You should have created a diversion that didn't involve attacking him, and the three of you gotten away."

"Perhaps I should patrol with them." Diana offered. "I might be better able to…"

"No." Bruce stated more harshly than he'd intended. "Bane is a distraction to the bigger picture. You and the League need to focus on what Ra's is doing. Besides, I don't allow Meta's in my city."

Diana glowered at Bruce. She didn't like being told what to do, even if Bruce had a valid point. She wanted to prove his theory wrong though and help him and his family to avoid harm. "But perhaps Bane would be able to tell us something if we captured and interrogated him." She argued.

"Bane is just a hired gun by Ra's that was designed to take me out of the equation." Bruce responded while adding his own glare towards her. "Ra's wouldn't trust him with such information. He's not even a true part of the League of Assassins. He doesn't even tell them any more than absolutely necessary and they are loyal to Ra's to the death. We'll handle Bane here. You and the League need to work on getting Ra's and stopping him."

Diana crossed her arms over her chest and made sure she had a look showing how displeased she was with Bruce's opinion. She wasn't going to listen to any more from this stubborn man. She turned towards Alfred and allowed her anger to dissipate, but only slightly. "I trust that you have enough help here to get Bruce back to his room?" She asked.

"Well, I…do believe so Miss Diana." He answered.

"Good." She said and turned to walk over towards the Teleporter. As she punched in the commands to return to the Watchtower she finished what she had to stay. "Since I will be busy working with the League to stop Ra's, I might not be able to offer much help here."

Alfred gave Bruce a disapproving look as he responded. "I certainly understand Miss Diana, and I wish you luck in completing your mission against the Demon's Head. Though _I_ certainly hope it will not keep you from returning to the Manor soon."

Bruce looked back at his butler before looking over at Diana again. It seemed that they were conspiring against him, and he didn't like that one bit. He waited until Diana disappeared in the white light of the Teleporter before his eyes returned to Alfred. "Is there something you need to tell me?"

"For one as intelligent as you Master Bruce, I would think the answer would be quite clear." Alfred responded with a hint of his disapproval now dripping into his tone of voice.

"Why don't you marry her then if you like having Diana around so much?" Bruce rhetorically asked.

"Were I a younger man, I would certainly entertain that possibility Master Bruce." Alfred fired back before turning on his heels and heading over to the medical area to gather the materials he'd need to patch Dick up.

Bruce turned towards the other three in the cave and saw Dick and Barbara trying to hold back from snickering at seeing Bruce getting put into his place. "What are you looking at?" Bruce fumed. They all turned their attention away from Bruce's glower as they continued fighting the urge to burst out in laughter. Even Tim seemed to be struggling to keep a straight face at that point. Bruce had seen enough of this and focused back onto the other elephant in the room. "Did Bane reveal anything of any use?"

"Actually he was confirming his attack on you Bruce." Dick responded after clearing his throat. "He must have gotten word of the Batman being back out on patrol. Then he wanted to remove me from the suit. Something about dishonoring you by my wearing it."

"Is that all?" Bruce asked.

"Well, at first I thought I was winning the fight with him, but I saw him do something with his hands and then he became ten times stronger it seemed." Dick explained.

Bruce remained silent as he thought through what Dick had told him. He stayed quiet as Alfred tended to Dick's nose and Barbara went over to the Cray supercomputer where she input Dick's findings into the file on Bane that they'd started. When Alfred finished mending Dick's nose Bruce finally broke his silence. "Under no circumstances are any of you to engage Bane again. If you spot him, track him from a safe distance and observe him and his actions only. If you're spotted, then leave, immediately. No hesitation at all. Your safety needs to come first. We'll find a weakness and once we do, that's when we'll exploit it."

"We?" Dick asked.

Bruce looked down at his feet and when everyone else's eyes followed his he wiggled one of his big toes. "We." He confirmed.


	26. Chapter 26: Seeking You Out

~~ 3 weeks later ~~

The world seemed to be crumbling from under the Earth's crust both literally and figuratively. The Justice League seemed to remain two steps behind Ra's at every turn. They'd been able to locate two of the devices that Ra's was utilizing in order to move the tectonic plates at his will. Using Batman's instructions, they were able to reverse the movement from the two shifts, but not before some damage had been caused. Superman's patience had begun to wear thin trying to play catch up. Especially when there was no signs of them catching even a glimpse of the Demon Head. Batman's lack of communicating with the League also was playing a part in Superman's frustration as he had become less and less willing to work with the League. He may not have officially resigned from the League, but his lack of being available when they called for his help didn't seem to indicate that he had plans on being a part of the League.

Even Diana hadn't been visiting Bruce like she had been after he had been injured by Bane. In fact, she hadn't been down to the Manor one time in the past three weeks. While things had been busy, there was certainly enough available time for her to have stopped in to check on his progress, but had spent the majority of her time in the training room instead. Flash had been the first to question her, and the glower she responded with would have made Batman proud. When she slammed a fist into the wall, which was all the notice that he needed to receive before zipping away as fast as possible.

Superman knew now that too much time had passed and along with J'onn, they were going to force Bruce's hand in one form or another. He could either join the next meeting via teleconference, or he would be receiving unannounced visitors. They simply needed to catch up with Ra's so that they could put a stop to the damage that he was attempting to cause. Superman chose the upcoming League meeting to reach out to Batman as it was highly likely that he would be a no show once again. Superman was actually the last one into the meeting room that would be in attendance.

The meeting started off normally until they reached the final topic, which was the pink elephant that no one seemed to want to bring up. Superman went around the tabled starting from his left where J'onn was sitting. The Martian had been researching every avenue that he could based off of the League's file on Ra's al Ghul, but that research didn't result in any plausible leads to go off of. Flash was next, but he had little to add as the investigative part of missions was not his strong suit. Next up was Shayera. She had been investigating Ra's from more of a ground level approach, preferring to get her hands dirty with real police work than being behind a computer. She had gone off of a couple of leads, but both turned out to be dead ends. John Stewart wasn't able to add much to the investigation as he had been called away for Green Lantern duties the majority of the week. That left Diana. Superman was acutely aware that Diana hadn't been seeing Bruce lately, and he assumed that Bruce had done or said something that got under Diana's skin. However she was a professional colleague and would simply have to put her anger aside for the sake of the League. He looked over at Diana when she didn't chime in after John finished. "Diana." Superman called to her. "Do you have anything to add? Perhaps something that you and Batman worked together on?"

Diana's head snapped to the direction of her Kryptonian friend violently. She threw a nasty glare at Superman for a moment before she responded. "I haven't worked with Batman since before the previous meeting Kal."

"I think Batman has been silent long enough then." Superman responded. "His insight is invaluable to the League."

"I have tried contacting him, but he isn't responding to my hails" J'onn stated.

"Diana, have you tried contacting him lately?" Superman asked turning back to face the Amazon.

"No." She answered quickly.

"You've got the best chance to get a response out of him Diana." Superman responded.

"Why would he be more likely to respond to me than anyone else?" Diana retorted.

"Oh come on Wondy." Flash chimed in. "Everyone here knows that he likes you the best out of all of us."

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Look at the facts princess." Shayera explained. "You're the only one of us that he's even allowed to visit since he's been injured."

"That's…" Diana stumbled momentarily as she thought of how to divert this topic. "That's only because I found…." She stopped herself from delving any further. She knew that Flash wouldn't drop it if he found out that she knew Batman's secret identity. "Fine. I'll try contacting him." She enabled her comm link and opened a channel where she paged Batman. She waited about ten seconds before calling out to him again. Each call was met with silence.

Superman huffed in frustration. "Alright, I think it's time to take some more drastic measures." He stated. "Diana and J'onn, you both will come with me down to confront…"

"What do you want Diana?" Came the voice of Batman over the intercom for the meeting room. Flash leaned back with a shit eating grin on his face and placed his hands behind his head. He was almost saying that he told them so with his body posture.

"We're at the end of our meeting and discussing how best to put a stop to Ra's." Diana said.

"I'll let you know when I come up with any leads." Batman responded.

"So you're not having any luck finding him either?" Superman asked.

"I never said that." Batman answered. "I'm busy. I'll call when I have something to report. Batman out."

The line went dead and they knew that would be all they would get out of Batman. Superman sat back in his chair for a moment. "Alright, everyone continue looking for any leads." He ordered. "Diana, J'onn, I need a minute of your time. The rest of you, the meeting's adjourned."

Superman waited until John, Flash, and Shayera had left before he stood up and faced both J'onn and Diana. "That's not enough from Batman." He said. "We're going down to see him face to face where he can't escape so easily."

"Why the three of us?" Diana asked. She was still angry with Bruce and didn't want to go down to the Manor.

"Because we each know who he is, and the more of us that are there, the better our chances of getting him to cooperate." Superman explained.

"Also, each of us has a different approach and Batman may be more responsive to one of us over the other two." J'onn chimed in.

Diana audibly sighed. She knew they were right, and also knew that there was no point arguing further with either of them. She held her chin high in a regal stature so as to defy anyone to believe she wasn't going to handle a tepid situation with grace and professionalism. She remained a step behind Superman and J'onn as they all walked to the transporter room.

~~ Batcave ~~

"Damn it!" Bruce yelled out. He was gathering himself back up from where he'd fallen during his physical therapy.

"Master Bruce, you must slow down." Alfred half pleaded and half ordered at the same time. "Miss Leslie did not provide you with a normal therapy regimen, but if she'd known that you would increase her program tenfold she certainly would have only offered the standard exercises."

"I have to push myself Alfred." Bruce countered as he got back up to his feet with the help of the balance beam bars. "You know what's happening out there. I can't just sit back and let it continue."

"And you have a family of partners here that are more than willing to help you in that quest." Alfred fired back.

Bruce shot a glare to Alfred even though he knew it would get him nowhere. Force of habit perhaps when dealing with someone trying to tell him about his limitations. "Bane's still out there Alfred." Bruce responded. "He's already taken over the mob racket, and Joker's been warring with him for control of the city. Dick, Barbara and Tim are doing all that they can, but someone has to stop him."

Alfred actually revealed his frustration. It was something Bruce had rarely ever seen from the old man. He watched as Alfred shut his eyes while pinching the bridge of his nose as he took several breaths to compose himself. "Bruce…son." Alfred began with heavy emotion dripping in his tone of voice. "I've never before stepped in to question what you are doing, but I cannot in good conscience remain silent this time. I've loved you as a father would his own son. I fear each night that you will not return to the cave, even though you've always proven that to not be the case. But the last time you confronted Bane, he nearly killed you. In fact, if we hadn't alerted Master Kent of your situation Bane very well could have. I beg of you, don't confront Bane on your own. I don't want to live through burying my son next to his parents."

For a moment Bruce thought he could see a tear run down Alfred's cheek. Bruce looked down at his own feet in silence. He knew what he was going to say wouldn't sit well, but he refused to lie to Alfred about his intentions. "I don't want to disappoint you Alfred." Bruce started. "But I'm not going to stop trying because of one man and seemingly unwinnable odds."

Alfred took in a deep breath. He wasn't frustrated any longer, but was instead in a state of defeat. "Then sir, you will do so without my services." He stated. "I will not support this decision sir."

Bruce's eyes shot back over to his butler as Alfred turned and walked away from him and out of the cave. Bruce couldn't be certain, but he was leaning heavily towards the odds that Alfred was serious about resigning. Bruce wanted to stop him and convince him to stay, but he knew that Alfred would hear none of that. Besides, he still wasn't healed enough to keep up with Alfred walking up the stairs, and he had refused to use the elevator as soon as he was able to support his own weight. Bruce didn't get much chance of chasing after Alfred anyways as his thoughts were interrupted by the alarm indicating that the teleporter was transporting someone to the cave. Looking over to the computer screen, he was disappointed when he saw that it was Kent, but then two more warnings shot up. Kent was coming with reinforcements with J'onn and Diana. "Just perfect." Bruce growled to himself as the molecules of the three heroes combined to materialize each person before him. Superman led the three of them as they stepped off the teleporter platform. "What the hell are you doing here Clark?" They heard Bruce growl at them from the training room.

"We need to talk Bruce." Clark answered. "Ra's is still out there and we don't seem to be gaining any ground on him."

"And what _exactly_ do you think I'm going to be able to do?" Bruce fumed. "Look at me Clark. I can barely walk under my own power for Christ's sake."

"Bruce, you're more than your body." Clark tried to reason with him. "You know how Ra's thinks. All we're asking for is some help locating him so that we can finally put a stop to him."

"Leave Clark." Bruce said in a near mumbling voice.

Clark looked back towards his two other friends for help getting through to Bruce. "Bruce, please." Clark pleaded. "We need your help."

Diana looked over to J'onn and reached out to him with her thoughts. _Why is he being so difficult?_

_You have to understand Diana._ J'onn responded. _Batman is the only one of us that has no extra physical powers to rely on. His thoughts tell me that he doesn't like anyone to see his mortality because he considers it a weakness._

_Being mortal is not weakness J'onn._ Diana returned.

_But Batman believes it to be. _J'onn explained. _Especially when compared to the other members of the Justice League._

Was that why he'd sent her away weeks ago? Did Bruce not want to be seen as weak in front of Diana? She wanted to investigate this possibility. She walked forward before placing a hand on Superman's shoulder. "Kal, J'onn." She said. "Please give Bruce and I a moment to talk."

Superman looked back to J'onn until the Martian nodded his head in agreement with whatever it was that Diana was considering. "We'll be up in the Manor Diana." He responded before leaning in and whispering in her ear. "Good luck Di. You're going to need it."

She waited until J'onn and Kal had left from view before returning her attention to Bruce. "The last time I saw you, you still hadn't had feeling in your legs." She commented. "Your recovery seems to be progressing quite well."

"Not well enough." Was his response as he grabbed hold of a cane before he walked slowly and with much care out towards the computers and his chair.

"Well, I suppose for Bruce Wayne that would be the case." Diana commented as a joke to try and break the tension. "According to reports, Wayne has absconded off with some beautiful woman for almost a month now. That exceeds most of his other conquests of women."

"Bruce Wayne is expected to return _alone_ tomorrow." Bruce explained as he took his seat and faced Diana. "The story we're coming with is an accident which left Wayne injured, cutting his time short with any woman, so his reputation is safe. Plus it will explain the need of a cane. I'm thinking a parasailing accident will be sufficient. We've already lined up all the hospital paperwork and witnesses that will swear to have seen Bruce Wayne."

"So you've thought of everything." Diana surmised. "Perhaps then you can help us to find Ra's."

"I can't help you Diana." Bruce said as he turned the chair and began pulling up various videos on the computer screens. "Dick was caught in the middle of a war with Joker and Bane. They changed course when they saw Dick in my Batman uniform. That was two weeks ago. The uniform was beyond repair. Dick hasn't gone out as Batman since."

"And no Batman in Gotham means that the criminals are running rampant on the streets." Diana assumed.

"I have to focus on coming back Diana." Bruce stated. "Gotham needs me, and I need to stop Bane."

"But Bruce, if we can't find and stop Ra's then what makes you think there will even be a Gotham to save."

"The Justice League still has six of the best the world has to offer as heroes." Bruce countered. "I'm just one man and not an important piece of the League even when I was healthy."

"That's not true." Diana argued while she spun the chair around so that Bruce was facing her. "You have been our tactician, and I believe our unofficial leader. Sure Kal plays the role in front of the masses and during meetings, but you are the leader when in battle or investigating our enemies. That's what the League needs Bruce. A direction to go, and without our leader, we've been struggling to find the correct direction to go. We need you."

Bruce sat back in his chair, deep in thought. Diana leaned down, placing her hands on the armrests of the chair. She waited only a few moments in silence before her patience began to wear thin. "You know something Bruce, it's bad enough that you're not helping teammates, but ever since the charity event I had grown to believe that not only were you and I teammates, but we had become friends. Even though you won't admit it, I believe that you and Kal are friends as well."

Bruce sighed as he knew that Diana was right. "Fine Diana, send me what you have found, and I'll see what I can come up with." He conceded. "Is that good enough?"

"For the League yes, but for me, not quite yet." Diana answered. Bruce's eyes showed her that he hadn't expected that response. She found that she enjoyed catching him off guard. "I want to know why you refused my help and pushed me away, and why you never tried to contact me in these last three weeks either. Especially considering how much time I'd spent with you before that while you recovered."

"It's…complicated Diana." Bruce answered.

"That's not good enough Bruce." Diana fired back. "I deserve to know why my friend would do such a thing."

"I don't know why Diana." Bruce responded. It was the truth. He couldn't explain why he'd acted the way he had or why he'd said what he did to get her to leave. He only knew that the Bat inside him made it so regardless of the man's desire to reach out and convince her to stay. "If I knew I'd explain it to you, but I just don't have an answer for that. All I can do is move forward and hope that you'll be able to do the same."

"I have moved forward Bruce." Diana stated as she stood and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I've been acting as a liaison for the League and working with the United States government. They've assigned two men to work alongside myself."

"Steve Trevor Jr. and King Faraday." Bruce said. "Both are decorated soldiers in their own rights."

"Yes, but their connections haven't been useful in catching Ra's al Ghul either." Diana added.

"Ra's is never far away from a Lazarus pit." Bruce stated before he turned and pulled up a map that showed all of the pits that he was aware of.

Diana looked over the map hoping to find some clues. "There's none even close to the areas where Ra's has had the devices that we've stopped." She commented as she pointed to the locations where each device had been found. "I'm not sure how this will help."

"It's all about patterns Diana." Bruce explained. "While Ra's is hard to locate, once we find the pattern he's using, we'll be able to triangulate where he would most likely be."

Upstairs Superman was pacing about in the library. He wasn't comfortable with Diana handling Bruce on her own. The man was stubborn as hell and Diana's temper had already flared with Bruce the last time she'd seen him. Superman was concerned that Diana might lose her temper and anger Bruce to the point where he would simply refuse to help at all. "How much longer are we supposed to wait up here J'onn?" He asked.

"It's the correct decision to have made Kal-El." J'onn offered. "I can sense that Diana is doing well with Batman. She should have him working very soon."

Superman stopped his pacing around upon hearing that. "So, we just continue to wait?" He asked even though he already knew the answer to that question. His attention was then distracted by the sight of Alfred walking passed the doorway with a suitcase in hand. He could see the anger still on the butler's face. "Alfred, wait!" He yelled out as he gave chase. "What's wrong?"

Alfred stopped in his steps and turned to face the Man of Steel. "I apologize Master Kent, but I am taking leave of this place." He answered.

"But why?" Clark asked.

"I refuse to sit back and watch Master Bruce destroy himself." Alfred explained. "If he wishes to get himself killed going after Bane again, then I will have no part of it."

"Is that what he's doing down there?" Clark asked. "Getting ready to go after Bane again?"

"It would seem obvious Master Kent." Alfred answered.

"With Bruce, I've come to realize that it's never obvious Alfred." Clark responded. "I'm sure Bruce has some sort of plan to come out on top otherwise he wouldn't go after Bane. Bruce always has a plan Alfred."

Alfred sighed as he set the suitcase down. "This time, I'm not so sure that is the case Master Kent." He said. "Master Bruce vowed to protect this city, and the last few weeks he's been forced to watch as it slowly fades back into the darkness from which he pulled the Batman persona out of. I believe he is hiding inside of a blind rage. One which is hindering him from approaching this situation logically."

"I do not believe that is the case Mr. Pennyworth." J'onn chimed in. "Bruce's mind seems to be quite clear at the moment. I believe he does indeed have a plan."

"Yes, I do." Bruce said as he entered from the grandfather clock entrance. "It's time for Bruce Wayne to return to the office. I need to speak with Lucius and get to the R &amp; D section of Wayne Enterprises. Diana has a list of possible locations for you to investigate on Ra's."

"What are you going to do in the R &amp; D department Bruce?" Clark asked.

"I need a new suit." Was his simple answer.

Another week had passed since Bruce's unexpected guests had shown up at his doorstep. He was able to provide them with enough information to go on about their search for Ra's and leave Bruce to continue healing and rebuilding what he'd lost. The return to Wayne Enterprises had been a circus, but an expected circus none the less. By the second day, things had calmed back down and everyone was sold on his story about where the playboy had been all this time. He continued rehabbing like a man possessed while at home, and while he was at Wayne Enterprises he remained locked up in the R &amp; D section. When Bruce gathered all of the material he felt he could utilize, it was then that Bruce moved back to strictly his office. He went straight to work designing the next version of the Batsuit. This one had more hidden access panels where weapons could be stored aside from the compartments on the belt. The CPU he would be using was enhanced as well. It would show up as a 3D image projecting off of the right gauntlet, and the images worked by touch. He also decided that the Batcave computer needed to be upgraded with this technology, and in the future the League computer systems as well. When the suit was completed, Bane would be in for a few surprises.

Alfred had ended up not leaving after all. Whatever Clark had said to him seemed to affect his decision to stay. He still was giving Bruce the silent treatment, and absolutely refused to go down to the cave for any reason. He may not have left, but he was making sure that his opinion on the matter would not be left to fall by the wayside. Bruce would have to deal with that issue head on instead of dancing around it, but that would have to wait for the time being.

~~ A palace in the Himalaya's ~~

"Why you are here Bane is because your efforts have apparently not kept the detective's mind focused on his beloved city." Ra's explained to the masked man standing before him. "The Justice League are getting too close, and I suspect they've managed to glean information from the detective recently. This is the critical portion of my plan, and until now they've only managed to slow the process slightly."

"So you've called me here to stop the Justice League should they interfere any further?" Bane asked.

"Precisely." Ra's responded. "You will help to keep the group divided and away from the Kryptonian. I will deal with him should the need arise." Ra's stopped speaking as he began to feel the palace tremble. He looked around as the trembling began to increase steadily. Standing up, he walked around slowly with his eyes set to the ceiling. The palace was built into a mountain and his throne room was built into the mountain. It was meant to be a safe room in the event of attack, but it seemed as though the room was about to be compromised. "Bane, it appears your abilities are needed sooner than I had expected."

Just then pieces of the ceiling began to fall to the floor and the room began to fill with dust. He could tell that unexpected guests had arrived.


	27. Chapter 27: When It All Goes Down

As the dust cleared, Ra's began to make out the silhouettes of Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern. He looked to the right and also saw the Flash, Hawkgirl, and the Martian Manhunter. "It's over Ra's." Superman declared to the Demon's Head.

Ra's merely smirked before turning to his throne and taking his seat. "Oh I think not Kryptonian." He stated. "While this…visit was unexpected so early, I had taken into account that inevitably there would be the possibility that the detective would aid you in your search for me."

Superman looked around for a moment to see what it was that Ra's could be talking about that would prevent them from stopping him. "None of your men can stop the League Ra's. Not even with this Bane in your employ." He responded.

Ra's laughed rather loudly with the utmost confidence in his posture. "No no, no my dear Kryptonian." Ra's said between laughs. "Bane is not what I've been referring to. You've truly not figured everything out as of yet have you? Perhaps the detective didn't help you after all."

~~ Batcave ~~

"Where the hell is he?" Bruce said aloud to no one in particular. He was scrolling through various camera feeds throughout the city. He was frustrated beyond belief. Bruce had finally put together his new suit and was anxious to field test it. He'd made steady progress in the last week with his rehabilitation. He was no longer using a cane to assist him with walking. He'd even begun some running and moderate weight lifting to test his motor skills and strength. Everything seemed to be finally coming back to normal. He just needed to focus and regain some of his lost strength from being bed ridden for so long.

"What's going on Bruce?" Tim called as he walked down the steps into the cave. "I thought I heard you talking to someone."

"No Tim, only myself." Bruce responded. "I can't seem to locate Bane. Just two days ago I had his location pinned down, but now it's almost as if he's left the city entirely."

"Well, maybe he did." Tim surmised. "You said it yourself that Ra's had hired Bane. Maybe he needed him for another mission. Maybe Ra's needed him to help keep the Justice League off his tail."

"Perhaps, but if that's the case, I've already helped the Justice League to try and pinpoint where Ra's is hiding." Bruce answered as he continued studying images on the computer screens. "Besides, I'm sure Clark or Diana would be able to handle Bane on their own, and the rest of the League should be equipped well enough to handle the League of Assassins. Unless…"

Tim perked up upon Bruce's silence. He could see that Bruce was working through some possible scenarios. "Unless?" He questioned to push Bruce to answer.

"Ra's always likes to be at least two steps ahead of his opponents." Bruce started to answer. "He most likely sent Talia and Bane to find out the extent of my injuries. With that knowledge, a man such as Ra's would have to account for the possibility that I'd still help the League."

"Okay…." Tim said with a hint of confusion in his voice. "So that means?"

"Bane and the League of Assassins with some outside influences, such as Kryptonite could help turn the fight in their favor, but only if they can stop Diana and the rest of the League with Superman subdued." Bruce explained. "But Kryptonite is still risky. If one Justice League member were to get their hands on it, then Ra's would lose his advantage."

"I see what you mean." Tim commented. "Well, maybe Ra's wants Bane for the other members, and he's got something similar to Kryptonite in store for Wonder Woman and Superman."

"Some thing." Bruce repeated slowly as his mind began to race again. "Oh God Tim, I hope that I'm wrong." Bruce began furiously typing on the keyboard. Within seconds a map was on the screen, pinpointing the destination of active Justice League communicators in the Himalaya's. When he had their location pointed out, Bruce shot up out of his chair and marched over to the cases that contained his suits along with the newest prototype Batsuit. Tim followed him over to the casing where Bruce had already strapped on the armored pants and boots.

"What's going on Bruce?" He asked as he watched Bruce continue changing into the Batsuit. "You're not even 100% healed yet. What do you think you're doing?"

"The League needs me." Bruce answered before grabbing the cowl and turning to make his way back over to the Cray super computer. Once there, he opened a channel and made contact with Dick. "Nightwing, this is Batman. Come in."

After a few seconds, Dick responded. "I didn't think I'd be hearing that voice again so fast. What is it Batman?"

"I need you to help cover Gotham tonight." Bruce responded. "I have to meet up with the League to stop Ra's. They're walking into a trap."

"Alright Batman." Dick called back. "I'll be there to pick up Robin within the hour. Watch yourself."

Bruce didn't respond as he knew that Dick was closing the channel immediately after giving his answer. Bruce then pulled the cowl over his head and began a systems check on his suit while he stocked the utility belt with all of the arsenal he felt he'd need. He loaded the belt with more explosive batarangs and the experimental putty batarangs he'd designed and created that week. A 3D image appeared from the right gauntlet showing a diagnostics listing. Bruce scrolled through the image and closed it before turning to face the questioning look from Tim. "I know what you're thinking Tim, but I'm not just going into this without having thought it through." He said. "I don't have time to explain so I'm just going to ask that you trust my judgment."

Upon hearing that explanation, Tim allowed Bruce to walk passed him, also knowing that he wouldn't be able to stop Bruce in the first place if Bruce didn't want to allow it. Tim watched as Bruce climbed up into the Batwing and fired up the engines. Within seconds, the Batwing disappeared from the cave. Alfred at that point had come down the steps and stood at the Tim's side. "Where in the bloody blazes is Master Bruce going?"

"He found out that the rest of the League was walking into a trap, and he left to help them." Tim answered while still looking off to the place where the Batwing had been just moments ago. "Bruce told me that he wasn't just going into the fight without a plan, and asked me to trust his judgment."

Alfred sighed as he placed a comforting hand on the younger man's shoulder. "I'm afraid in times such as these; we haven't a choice but to do as Master Bruce asks." He said. "Even if we believe it to be a fool's errand."

~~ Himalayan palace throne room ~~

The Justice League had been surrounded by the League of Assassins, but none of them seemed overly concerned at the odds. They were all Meta's after all, and Superman could most likely handle all these men while the rest focused on Bane. That however wasn't how Superman felt like handling the situation. "I'll take Bane. The rest of you focus on the League of Assassins." Superman ordered.

They were about to engage the enemies until Ra's began to laugh after hearing Superman's orders. When he was finished laughing he explained his amusement. "I'm afraid, Kryptonian that your plan will not fare so well for the rest of your team. Haven't you been the least bit curious as to the means of moving my equipment down under the planet's surface?" He waited for a moment to see if anyone wanted to answer before continuing. "Your silence is deafening Kryptonian. Truly your band of Meta's is sorely lacking without the detective's intellect. Allow me to enlighten you then."

Ra's pressed a button on the arm of his chair, which caused a remote control to rise up from in front of his hand. He held the remote up and pressed a button on it. Soon afterwards some sporadic minor tremors occurred in the pattern of footsteps. "What the hell did you just do?" Green Lantern asked as he held his ring at the ready for an attack.

"Ah yes, the intergalactic police officer with fancy jewelry." Ra's said as he turned his focus towards John. "You see, I needed a rather specific tool in order to perform the necessary tasks for my plan to come to fruition. In fact, your removal of the previous devices only slightly hindered my timeline. The heat produced by the planet's core would have in time rendered the machinery completely inoperable even without your interference. You merely saved the masses a few days from what will be inevitable. Which brings me back to the original question of how did I manage to get my equipment there in the first place. One only need to look to the Kryptonian for the answer to that question."

The Justice League all glanced over to Superman with questioning plain to see in their eyes. "I had nothing to do with your plan Ra's." Superman called out.

"Of course not Kryptonian." Ra's confirmed. "But someone or something rather would have to be able to endure such as yourself in order to move the equipment where I needed, and here he comes now." Everyone looked over to the throne room's entrance where they found none other than Doomsday standing before them. "I will admit that it took a considerable amount of coercion to convince the Doomsday monster to do my bidding, but as you can see his obedience has been attained." Ra's pressed some more buttons on the remote before he began to bark out orders to the monster. "Kill the Kryptonian and then the Amazon, Doomsday."

The monster charged at Superman as the League of Assassins and Bane engaged the rest of the Justice League. "Get the remote!" J'onn called out to the rest of the team as he was met with multiple assassin ninjas.

"I've got it!" Flash shouted as he took off through the crowd of people towards his target. As he got close though, a blast of gas came up and he wasn't able to stop before sliding through. Flash began coughing as he gasped for fresh air. Soon he collapsed onto the ground unconscious, and two assassins picked him up by the arms and dragged him away.

"Flash!" Shayera yelled before breaking off to chase after their scarlet clad teammate.

"Shayera, wait!" John yelled in vain just before one assassin jumped on his back and injected a needle into the side of his neck. John quickly tossed him off, but as he reached his hand up to his neck to remove the now empty syringe, another assassin tossed a flash bang grenade into John's face blinding him.

Shayera continued charging after Wally until she was stopped by a large hand grabbing hold of her by a wing. She turned, swinging her mace at the one that had stopped her from helping Wally, but her wrist was grabbed by Bane's other hand. He was chuckling slightly as he squeezed and snapped her wrist. Shayera screamed in pain before Bane then focused on her wing. He quickly grabbed it with both hands and slammed it down over his knee, practically breaking and ripping it off her body. Shayera looked up at Bane as he grabbed her mace off the ground and raised it over his head to smash it across her face. She closed her eyes as she waited for the final blow to strike her down, but instead heard another thud above her. She opened her eyes to see the sight of Bane picking up an assassin from off the top of him and tossing the man away.

"Why don't you pick on someone your size Bane?" Wonder Woman called out. She had taken the assassin and threw him into Bane before he could kill Shayera with her own mace. Bane looked over to Hawkgirl and saw that the League of Assassins were handling her before he climbed up to his feet and dusted himself off.

"Do you think you can provide me with a proper challenge Amazon?" Bane asked defiantly. "As fast as your Justice League is falling, it doesn't appear likely."

Diana approached Bane with caution, but not lacking in a confident stance. She was the first to take a swing at the other, and Bane deftly dodged out of the way before countering and striking her in the face, which drove her back a few steps. She wiped the back of her hand across her face checking for blood before returning to her attacking stance. She swung first again, but this time offered a feint. Bane moved in a position not unlike Batman had during sparring sessions. She knew what to do, and a swift spinning heel kick was what she offered next. That blow hit it's mark, spinning Bane onto the ground as he lost his balance. "Is that challenge enough for you little man?" She taunted as she placed her hands on her hips.

Bane reached over to one hand and Diana could see him turning his other hand before smacking the top of the other hand and charging forward. She wasn't prepared for this and Bane drove his shoulder into her midsection, which knocked her off balance and into the ground. He rose up to begin throwing down multiple blows to her head, and Diana met each challenge with a block using her bracer covered forearms. After a handful of unsuccessful punches, Bane began to become increasingly frustrated. Diana used that frustration to her advantage, countering a block into an open handed strike which struck true to Bane's chest. The blow forced him up slightly, just enough so that Diana could pull a leg out from underneath the large masked man. She wasted no time in using that free leg to kick in a downward motion. Her leg struck across Bane's chest and was successful in driving him completely off the top of her. Having the space to take in her surroundings, Diana gave a quick glance over to Superman in an effort to see how he was faring against Doomsday before returning her focus to the task at hand.

J'onn was left to fend off most of the League of Assassins at this point. Diana had her hands full with Bane and a few assassins, and Superman was struggling against Doomsday. He needed to help his Kryptonian friend, but the line of assassins seemed to be endless. Superman was trying to maintain a full frontal assault on Doomsday, but the monster was just as impervious to pain as he himself was. There was also the fact that Superman was taking care so as to not cause the facility to collapse, while Doomsday didn't seem to care one way or the other. Every time Superman would ease up to keep the area stable around him; Doomsday used that to his advantage. He was slowly and methodically pounding Superman into submission. It wasn't a matter of if, but when it would be that Superman would fall at this point, and he knew that as well unless he could change the scenario in his favor where he could cut loose. As if his prayers had been answered, an opportunity finally presented itself as the monster had caused the floor above them to collapse around them, which left an opening that would be perfect. Superman allowed Doomsday to approach with a downward slamming fist that dropped the Kryptonian to his knees, but he used his body to absorb some of the punishment and rose back up with a forceful uppercut to Doomsday's jaw. That punch sent the monster flying up into the higher floor above them. There were only two more levels to go before he could take this battle outside. He was planning to bait Doomsday into being the aggressor so that he could back his way up and out of the palace. An occasional punch and counter would come, but his focus remained on backpedaling.

J'onn continued to fight his way through the League of Assassins. Slowly he was heading towards the Demon's Head and a hopeful end to the confrontation. When he was within one person from reaching Ra's however, the man before him molded into a creature he'd not seen on Earth before. It was large and elephant like but without the trunk or tusks. There were instead four dull fangs that protruded out of the monster's mouth and large dull white eyes. J'onn rolled away from being trampled before standing and turning to the creature. " Ma'alefa'ak?" He asked.

"Quite perceptive brother." J'onn's twin responded.

"What are you doing here?" J'onn asked.

"I'm ensuring your death." Ma'alefa'ak answered before he began to back away.

J'onn quickly noticed he was again being surrounded by the League of Assassins, but this time they were carrying more than swords. This time they were carrying flame throwers, but before J'onn registered what the weapons were, they all fired at him, dousing J'onn in flames. He screamed in pain as Ra's walked up behind some members that had surrounded the Martian.

"Ah and it must have slipped my mind that I had found a special guest for you my Martian friend." Ra's said. "He delivered such secrets about your nearly extinct race. I hope you enjoy the accommodations."

Diana was beginning to gain the upper hand over Bane as she swept his legs out from under him and began to repeatedly land haymakers against Bane's face. She only stopped to look up when she heard a loud crash happen. It was Doomsday that had landed violently back into the throne room. She was about to pound on Bane some more when she was met in the face by the shin of Talia al Ghul. Bane used the distraction to throw Diana off of him and into a nearby wall. She was furious that Talia had snuck in and attacked her from behind in such a cowardly fashion. Especially because she knew that Talia had some type of past history with Bruce. That thought caused her anger to increase even further as she gathered herself for both Bane and Talia. "How could you take his side in this Talia?" She asked. "How would your _beloved_ feel about this?"

"He knows where my loyalties lie, Amazon whore." Talia fired back. "And with witches like you lying in wait for my beloved, I must do what is necessary until he discovers that father's way is the only scenario to bring this world back to peace."

"So your just as mad as your father." Diana spat at Talia. "No wonder he wouldn't be with you."

"Silence Whore!" Talia screamed before coming out swinging at Diana's face.

Ra's was taking in everything around him thus far in the battle. So far Flash, Shayera, and Green Lantern had been subdued. The Martian was well on his way to being defeated, and Talia along with the League of Assassins were beginning to take their toll on the Amazon with the help of Bane. What was troubling was that Superman didn't seem to be losing any ground any more against Doomsday. In fact, he was beginning to win the battle. This wouldn't do at all. Ra's had to make a change, and reached into his inner coat pocket before removing a small metal box. When he opened the lid, a brilliant green light could be seen clearly, and he approached the two super Meta's with the piece of Kryptonite placed firmly in his hand. Superman could feel the effects of the Kryptonite weakening him with each step that Ra's took towards him. The Kryptonite was all the leverage that Doomsday needed to take control of the fight once again. By the time Ra's was a few feet away, Doomsday was on top of Superman ramming his fists into the Man of Steel's face repeatedly.

There was a pile of assassins attempting to pin Diana down when she happened to catch a glance over to Superman falling to Doomsday. She took the weight of all of the men piling on top of her and used all the force she could to explode upwards into the air. With great speed she headed over towards her friend to stop the brutal beating he was receiving. When she was mere inches away though, the monster raised an elbow which collided with her chest. It had actually knocked the wind out of Diana as she fought to catch her breath. Doomsday wasn't about to allow her to catch it either as he quickly turned and stomped on her chest repeatedly. Diana managed to catch his foot with her hands after the fourth stomp and shoved it away, giving her a chance to get back to a vertical base. She dodged an attempted right hook and overhand left from the monster before countering with a straight right of her own. That caused the monster to stumble backwards a step before he lunged at her again. She blocked another attempted hook shot, and went to attempt a hip toss to get Doomsday off of his feet, but he stomped on the back of her knee and sent his other fist crashing down onto the place between her left shoulder and neck. She grunted in pain, trying to hold back the scream inducing pain that resulted from that strike. The monster then followed up with a head butt to the back of Diana's head. She fought to get him to release his hold on each side of her head, but with each head butt she received, she could fill herself slipping into unconsciousness.

Superman managed to get to his feet despite the Kryptonite being so close and he leaped onto Doomsday's back as the monster was still focused on attacking Diana. "Leave her out of this Doomsday." Superman demanded. "Your fight is with me." Superman then used all his might to slam each of his fists down on each side of Doomsday's neck. The monster quickly tossed Diana away and spun around, whipping Superman off of his back before he again engaged the Kryptonian in their battle.

Diana climbed back onto her feet after her body came to a stop from the momentum of Doomsday's throwing her aside. She was about to re-engage with the monster when she was blindsided by a left hook that connected with her jaw. She was already dizzy from the violent strikes she had absorbed from Doomsday before that hook shot, and that caused the hook to almost drop her to her knees. She focused her thoughts on her Amazon training though to fight her body's growing need to succumb from the shots she had taken, and regained her center quickly enough to block the next attempted strike from Bane. She countered quickly with an overhand right, and followed that up with a forward snap kick that hit it's mark and drove Bane up against a wall. She quickly approached and began to assault Bane with lefts and rights followed by knees to his midsection, but she was caught off guard by Ma'alefa'ak as he morphed into a giant creature and slammed a massive forearm into her.

~~ Outside the palace ~~

The Batwing was descending towards the palace that Batman had discovered his fellow League members were located. He used the time during the flight to continue investigating the means and end goals of Ra's al Ghul's plans. He'd deduced that whatever it was Ra's was up to, he'd need to have some very specialized equipment in order to travel down under the Earth's crust to move the tectonic plates. He also went about running diagnostics against the new Batsuit. He hadn't had a chance to test much if any of the new suit's functionality. It was more armored than any previous version, but still remarkably light. The armored plating was much smaller to allow for as much flexibility as possible without giving too much access for bullets or knives. While no suit would be impervious to such attacks, Bruce limited those accessible points as much as possible. His left gauntlet was loaded with five batarangs that jettisoned out by compressed gas, much like his grapple gun. It was capable of firing all five shots at a high velocity. The batarangs he inserted there were electrically charged, containing enough voltage to send a normal human instantly unconscious. While it wouldn't subdue a true Meta, they would certainly feel the pain from the voltage, and allow Bruce time to attack or escape if need be. He was interrupted from his diagnostics scan as the Batwing alerted him that he'd arrived at his destination. He quickly inverted the plane and opened the hatch before plummeting towards the ground below him. He wanted to enter the palace as quietly as possible.

There was no telling what had become of the Justice League, as Batman had maintained radio silence, not wanting to disturb them if they were in a battle. After a few seconds of freefalling, he engaged the cape's hang gliding capabilities, slowing his descent incredibly. He made a soft landing on the top of the palace, and from there he could see clearly where all the guards were stationed. Some of the stations were surprisingly empty, although he could guess where those guards would be if the entire League was there. It would take everything Ra's had at his disposal to defeat the Justice League. He quickly found a place to enter the facility and slipped in unnoticed. Batman wondered throughout the palace, blindly following his instincts and detective skills to locate where Ra's and the League were. He didn't have to wait long for a clue though as the whole building shook from what sounded like a Meta slamming into a wall extremely hard. He wasn't sure, but he thought the cowl's enhanced hearing picked up the sound of Diana screaming in agony.

That sound caused something in Batman to snap as he ceased with his methodical and careful approach and instead rushed towards the source of the noise. Turning down two hallways, Batman eventually came upon a grand room with a large hole in the floor. It was easy to see that the hole had been recently created, most likely the effect of Superman's attack. Batman eased up to that hole and peered down into what he quickly discovered was the throne room. He surveyed the area as best he could, and quickly found that J'onn was down on the ground surrounded by flames as flamethrowers were being used all around him. To another side were Superman and Ra's. The monster was standing while Superman was on the ground barely crawling forward. Batman watched Superman wince in obvious pain as Ra's tossed a piece of Kryptonite right next to Superman's body. He then followed Ra's over to Diana who was on her knees, bloody and beaten with Bane holding her one arm and Doomsday the other. Batman knew what he had to do, and timing would be crucial.

Ra's knelt down in front of Diana and used his hand under her chin to lift her blood stained face where he could look into her eyes. "You are defeated Amazon." He proclaimed. "But such beauty and power shouldn't be left to destruction when you could be used for so much more."

"Wha….What are you talking about?" She asked.

"I am going to provide you with an option." Ra's answered. "You can be added to my harem and provide me with a powerful heir to my empire, and thus save yourself from destruction; or you can decline my generosity and not only cause your own demise, but your friends as well. I leave the choice to you."

Diana would never allow herself to become a concubine to any male. Especially one so evil as Ra's. She also wasn't sure if Ra's would even keep his word and spare the League. If Ra's were to leave them alive, then he would be susceptible to defeat in the future. Batman would surely devise a plan to defeat Ra's with the rest of the League to provide him with the necessary firepower. She was about to offer Ra's her emphatic decline to his offer when she could just make out the sound of a cape above her. Hearing that caused her to smirk defiantly to the Demon's Head before looking him in the eye. "I would rather die a thousand deaths then to ever allow you to touch me." She said in a condescending tone.

"You dare insult me Amazon?" Ra's questioned angrily. "Then join your friends in their…."

"I don't think so." Superman's voice called out from across the room.

Ra's looked over at Superman completely puzzled. "Where is the Kryptonite?" He asked in a raised almost panicked voice. Just then he heard a scuffle and turned to see Batman engaging the group of assassins with flamethrowers around J'onn.

"Doomsday, Bane, kill the Amazon and then the Kryptonian!" Ra's yelled. "Rip her apart!"


	28. Chapter 28: Something Worth Fighting For

"Diana!" Batman yelled after hearing Ra's give his orders. It was time to test the left gauntlet firing mechanism, and he did just that firing off an electrically charged batarang. The batarang flew straight and true, making contact with the face of Doomsday. It stuck there and sent a shock to the monster long enough to distract him while Superman flew in and slammed a fist into Bane's face, which sent him flying off into a far wall. Doomsday pulled the batarang out from where it had stuck in his face and crushed it in his hand. Superman focused on Doomsday and threw as strong a punch as he could muster, connecting on the bridge of Doomsday's nose. The monster barely flinched though. Superman's power had been sapped from being around the Kryptonite as well as the punishment he'd already taken from his battle with the monster earlier. Still he wasn't going to give in without a fight. Batman was there and certainly wasn't fully healed, so he used the thought of Bruce's will to help keep him motivated to push onward.

Knowing that Superman would keep Doomsday off of Diana, Batman went back to his task at hand of getting J'onn free from the assassins that had him pinned down with flamethrowers. As Batman was indeed not fully healthy, he wasn't relying as much on his martial arts skills to attack, but to defend until he could use his weapons to subdue the enemies. Quickly he found himself surrounded by a swarm of Ra's al Ghul's men. At least their attention had been removed from J'onn though. The Martian needed some time to recover from the torture he'd been put through with the fire. Batman used his cape to hide what he was doing underneath as he prepared to fight his way through the men around him. He waited for precisely the right moment before leaping over a charging assassin and throwing a putty batarang at a group of three men. It exploded upon impact of the man in the middle and the three of them were covered in the extremely sticky substance. They tried to separate themselves from each other, but found that task to be next to impossible. The putty like substance had them stuck to the ground and to each other. Batman then pulled out his grapple and shot it at another assassin directly across from him. When the grapple latched onto the man, Batman hit the retract button and leapt into the air. The retracting motion pulled Batman quickly over to the man where he strategically placed one foot on the man's chest while the second foot was used to kick the man in the face. That assassin crumpled to the ground unconscious, and Batman then dropped two smoke pellets on the ground. Soon he was covered in the smoke and that allowed him to get enough separation where he moved over and put J'onn's arm over his shoulders before firing off the grapple again and flying off through the hole in the ceiling. When they landed, he gave J'onn a once over to see the extent of the Martian's injuries. "Are you going to be alright J'onn?" He asked.

"I just need a moment." J'onn answered. "Ra's found Ma'alefa'ak, and discovered my vulnerabilities."

"Where is Ma'alefa'ak now?" Batman asked.

"Not sure, but most definitely not far away." J'onn responded. "I can still sense his presence."

"We need to get the rest of the League members free." Batman stated as he looked back down into the throne room where Superman was once again being pummeled by Doomsday. "I can't stop Doomsday and Clark's still too weak to taken him alone. I'll buy you some time before I go to get the others free."

J'onn nodded before Batman dove back into the throne room. He landed in typical Batman form before rising up to throw an explosive batarang at Doomsday. He pulled his arm back to throw the batarang, but his arm was stopped from being able to move forward. Bane had recovered from Superman's punch and grabbed hold of Batman's forearm. Thinking quickly, Batman moved swiftly and pulled Bane into a hip toss, slamming him into the ground. He used that moment to then throw the batarang at Doomsday. This time the batarang exploded when it connected with the back of Doomsday's head. He was already charging forward, and the explosion was strong enough to cause Doomsday to lose his balance momentarily. Diana was close by and saw this happening. She tried to shake off the cloudy haze in her head, and focused long enough to connect with an uppercut to the monster's chin.

Bane spun around and performed a leg sweep on Batman as his attention was focused on Doomsday for the moment. "I'm insulted that you would show such disrespect to the man that broke you when we last met." Bane said as he climbed to his feet. "I merely broke you last time, but now with your insult I am going to destroy you Batman."

"Shut up and fight." Batman fired back as he leaped into a crouched defensive position. Bane didn't wait long after the invitation was sent out as he pressed forward with mighty swings. Batman expertly dodged and avoided contact. When he had an opportunity to create some space, he executed a backward hand spring and upon landing on his feet again he had thrown another putty batarang at Bane's legs.

The batarang released the putty like substance as expected and webbed around Bane's legs while attaching to the ground around him. He didn't have time to react though as Diana yelled to gain his attention. "Batman!" She called out as she shoved him away. He hadn't realized how close he'd actually landed to Doomsday, as the monster had turned and was in the process of delivering a devastating blow. Diana saw this happening and mustered everything she had to save Batman from Doomsday. When she shoved him out of harm's way though, she placed herself in the path of that strike, and it connected straight into her face. She crumpled to the ground in a heap as she was barely conscious.

Batman rolled over to see Doomsday beginning to beat Diana mercilessly again and again. He was powerless to help her as he simply had nothing that could stop the monster. He looked around and saw Superman trying to get back to his hands and knees. "Superman!" He yelled. "He's going to kill her!"

Just that moment a red blur came and scooped Diana away from receiving another fist to her face. Flash stopped next to Batman before gently laying her down. "Wondy doesn't look so good Bats." Flash commented. Batman looked over her and probed with his fingers to find the extent of her injuries. At some point she had broken some ribs as some were trying to poke through her skin and armor, and there was blood coming out of her mouth. Her face was bruised and bloody from the amount of beating she'd received from Doomsday. The monster had once again focused on Superman for the time being, and Batman knew that he had to find a way to end this fight quickly. Unfortunately he didn't have much time to think of what to do as Bane had broken free and latched onto both Flash and Batman by the back of their necks. In a swift maneuver Bane connected the two hero's heads together with great force. It was almost enough to knock Batman unconscious even through the armor of protection that his cowl offered.

Batman was trying to find a way out of this predicament when J'onn phased in behind Bane and threw a hard punch at the back of the masked man's head. When he pulled his fist back though, J'onn noticed a green substance on the knuckles of his hand. Bane released Batman and Flash as he stumbled forward so that he could use his hands to keep himself upright instead of falling. When he turned and saw the Martian looking at his hand in a puzzling manner, Bane reached a hand to the back of his head, and pulled it in front of his face. Sure enough the same green substance was on his hand, the only difference was that he knew where it came from. The Martian had hit him it just the right spot to cause the venom to begin to leak out. Bane surmised that it was a minor leak, but he'd have to be careful in order to avoid losing more at a quicker rate. J'onn then flew over to Superman and landed while grabbing the arm of Doomsday. He used his momentum to fling the monster as far away as he could. Then he turned and quickly made a mental connection with each member of the Justice League.

_Green Lantern is struggling with fear and believes himself to be blind._J'onn informed everyone who wasn't aware of the situation. _His fear is uncontrollable and I was unable to assist him mentally of purging it. I was unable to free them as I sensed the trouble here and broke off with Flash to offer help where we could._

_What happened to John that caused this?_Batman asked as he delicately picked Diana up and moved her closer to the Martian alongside Flash, who was helping Superman to his feet.

_He was injected with something by one of the League of Assassins._ Superman explained. _I saw it before they threw a flash bang grenade in his face._

_Crane's fear toxin._ Batman responded. _I have the antidote in my belt. We have to move quickly. We're no match for Bane and Doomsday like this._

_Agreed._ J'onn concurred.

_I hate to interrupt guys, but we have company coming up fast._ Flash chimed in to get everyone's attention. Sure enough Bane and the League of Assassins were quickly approaching with Ra's and Doomsday at the rear.

_Undue whatever Ra's is using to influence Doomsday._ Batman ordered. _We already know what he'll do when he thinks on his own. Remove him from the equation and we stop Ra's. We have to end this now. I'm going to set some charges and bring the building down. Be ready to evacuate quickly._

Flash took off and began engaging the League of Assassins, while making certain he kept aware of his surroundings. He didn't want to be knocked out again so he kept his distance from Ra's for the time being. Doomsday and Bane were joined by Ma'alefa'ak as they faced Superman and J'onn. The goal was to stall them long enough to allow Batman the time to set the charges, help John and Shayera, and stop whatever was being used to control the monster. They also had to keep everyone away from Diana, as she was in no condition to fight anymore.

Flash opened up a path for Batman to head through that would first get him to John and Shayera. There were only a few straggling assassins to deal with on his way out of the throne room. Once out, Batman worked his way around using J'onn's telepathy to help guide his way to their teammates. When he got there, he was surprised to see just how bad of shape Shayera was in. She was trying to talk to John, but he wasn't responding to her. He was too consumed with his own debilitating fears to know what was going on around him. Batman made quick work getting to John where he administered the antidote. Within moments, John's body stopped quivering and his breathing began to normalize. When he was back to acting rationally once again, Batman went over to Shayera and picked her bonds to get her free. She was nursing a badly damaged wing and broken arm, but once free she helped John to his feet. "I still can't see anything." John informed them.

"You will….in time." Batman explained. "Once the damage from the flash bang grenade heals."

"If I can't see, I can't use my powers." John admitted. "It would be better to leave me here. Get out while you all can."

"Never leave a man behind." Batman countered with marine beliefs to stop John from arguing his point further. "Shayera, get John to the Javelin as soon as you can. The rest are in the throne room keeping everyone distracted while I'm prepping the building to be demolished."

Shayera nodded in understanding and headed off in search of an exit. Batman went the other direction and pulled out a handful of plastique explosives. He began strategically placing the explosive material around the load bearing walls and columns, making sure that there would be no saving the palace once the explosions occurred.

Back in the throne room, Diana had come to, and was refusing to sit out the fight. She went straight after Bane to provide J'onn and Superman with better odds. The first thing that she had noticed was that Batman was nowhere in sight, but she didn't question it because of all the chaos going on around her. Ra's and Talia had disappeared from the throne room as well, but with Doomsday, Ma'alefa'ak, and Bane to deal with, the Justice League's hands were more than tied for the time being. J'onn had to keep going back and forth between his twin and Doomsday because in Superman's weakened state, it left him in a manner that he simply couldn't keep up with the seemingly indestructible monster battling with him. Flash was doing well against the League of Assassins. So far in the battle, none of them had been able to lay a finger on him at all. He had created a small pile of unconscious assassins, but even with all the assassins he'd taken care of, there still seemed to be an endless line that remained.

Diana was actually faring rather well against Bane on her own. While she was far away from being in her prime condition, she was still delivering powerful blows to Bane that he was having trouble with taking and handling. She also made sure to protect her midsection from attacks at all times. The pain that she was in was excruciating, but while she could still draw a breath and stand, she would continue to fight for victory. Bane had realized that he was quickly beginning to lose this fight with the Amazon. She was putting up quite the effort even though she had suffered painful injuries. Bane tried going after her damaged ribs, but Diana held her defense well to keep herself protected in that area. All of her counter punches were starting to land regularly as Bane was beginning to quickly wear down the longer the fight went on. He'd already taken quite a few shots from Diana before she had been injured by Doomsday, and she still packed quite a bit of power behind her punches. They were beginning to take their toll on the masked man. In a move of desperation, he lunged forward trying to get close enough to get his hands on her ribcage. Diana wasn't caught off guard though and side stepped before latching onto Bane's head and pulling it down while her knee flew upwards. There was a crunching sound that could be heard just before Bane screamed in pain. He was on his knees with his eyes watering profusely from the knee strike when he looked up at Wonder Woman. He'd been defeated and he knew it as she stood before him. "This is for what you've done to Batman." She announced to him., and Bane merely closed his eyes as he waited for what she was going to do next.

~~ Palace halls ~~

Batman had made his way around the palace and was putting the last few pieces of plastique explosives on a pillar. When he detonated the explosives, there'd be nothing left of the palace. Especially if there was indeed a Lazarus pit anywhere nearby. As he finished prepping the last of the explosives, a Shuriken star stuck into the pillar just above Batman's head. He ducked and rolled away from the pillar before shooting back up with a batarang at the ready to be released in the direction of the transgressor. "You've been a thorn in my side for much too long detective." Ra's called out to him from down the hallway. "You should instead be at my side with my daughter as your loving wife."

"So long as you intend to take innocent lives, I'll be standing where I've always been Ra's." Batman responded.

"Then have it your way detective." Ra's said as he pulled a samurai sword from its sheath at his side. Ra's charged quickly over to Batman as he brought his blade down from over his head in an attempt to strike Batman down. Batman used his gauntlets to block the strike and side step his way out of the danger of being sliced. He moved around Ra's, waiting for the next attack, and didn't have to wait long before the Demon's Head attacked again. This time he used the scallops of the gauntlets to pinch the sword tightly so that Ra's couldn't pull it free. He was face to face with Ra's as both sneered at the other.

"What do you think you're going to do Ra's?" Batman asked as he kept the sword from being used. "You've lost."

"I have?" Ra's questioned with much confidence in his voice. "Soon you'll be the only member of the fabled Justice League left standing."

"Your over confidence is going to be your downfall." Batman commented before violently pulling his arms, causing the blade of the sword to snap into pieces between the scallops of his gauntlets.

Ra's dropped the useless hilt of the sword and took a step back while reaching for a remote from his belt. He pulled it out and pointed it towards a wall. "Let's just see shall we." Ra's said before turning on a security monitor screen hanging off the wall. It revealed the throne room. They could see Diana gaining the upper hand over Bane while Flash struggled to keep on top of all the League of Assassins. J'onn was still up in arms with his twin brother and Superman was losing his fight with Doomsday, but he still hadn't given up. "It appears that you've caused the Galactic policeman and Hawk winged woman to escape, but they shouldn't be hard to defeat on their own. Superman's death quickly approaches and once Doomsday has finished with him, the monster will then kill the Amazon. You already know that I'm aware of the Martian's limitations."

"But I'm here to stop you." Batman stated.

"No beloved, you're not." Talia said as she entered the hallway from a doorway behind Batman with a gun pointed at him.

"Talia…." Batman started. "Sometimes I wonder why I ever believed that your feelings for me were real."

"That hurts beloved." Talia responded showing the hurt on her face. "My feelings for you are real, but I need for you to compromise and come with father and I."

"You know that's not going to happen Talia." Batman said.

Talia glanced over Batman's shoulder for a minute before smiling. "That's a shame beloved, but not entirely surprising with seeing that harpy in your home. At least I'll get the satisfaction of seeing her end since she decided to try and steal you from me."

"What are you….." Batman started before turning to face the monitor once again. What he saw made his jaw drop instantly. He almost couldn't believe it at all before he turned and left Ra's and Talia to make their escape.

~~ Back in the throne room ~~

Diana picked Bane up and was ready to slam his back down across her knee when she was hit from behind by Superman. He'd been tossed by Doomsday and flew straight into her. Bane dropped to the ground as the two heroes finally came to a stop. Diana was coughing up blood now while she tried to get out from under an unconscious and severely beaten Superman as Doomsday closed in on the two of them. She knew that if she didn't get the both of them out of there soon, then they'd meet their demise right there. Diana finally got Superman off of her when Doomsday had reached the two of them. She awaited her destined trip to the Elysian Fields and issued a prayer that should she fall, the rest of the Justice League find a way to stop the mad man responsible from harming any more innocents, but before she finished her prayer, she was interrupted by an explosion that occurred very near to her. She opened her eyes to see a second batarang swiftly flying towards the monster. Diana watched the batarang as it traveled through the air, and saw Doomsday turn around to catch the second explosive batarang before it exploded in his hand. Batman had gotten the monster's attention at that point, but Diana knew it would only be a matter of time until someone would have to do something to stop Doomsday.

Batman had come running into the room like a man possessed. He didn't even think twice when he let the first two batarangs go. When he had placed the monster's focus on him, he knew that he had to think quickly going forward. He didn't stop running forward into the room, and when he reached the center of the room, he took another two explosive batarangs and tossed them straight up through the hole that had been created during the early stages of the battle. He had concocted a plan as the two batarangs exploded on contact and brought down debris from what used to be the ceiling from two floors above. "Diana!" Batman yelled. "Bring Superman over to where I'm standing as soon as I make my move!"

Diana nodded before making her way up to her feet and working to scoop Superman up into a fireman's carry. She then watched as Doomsday was stalking towards Batman, and he remained where he stood, not backing up in inch as the monster continued to get ever closer. She was amazed that Bruce was just standing there when facing such a formidable opponent. Why would he do such a thing when he'd have to have seen what this monster had done to Superman? What plan did the Dark Knight have in store for when he lured Doomsday to where he wanted the monster to be? She almost eagerly awaited for the answers to her questions to come in the next few seconds as Doomsday had made his way right next to Batman by that point. There was a mighty swing taken by Doomsday that Batman avoided before reaching forward and placing something on each of Doomsday's shoulders and back flipping away. When he was in the middle of his flip, Diana saw two black objects fly up into the air from where Batman was, and she figured that was the signal, so she took flight, heading to where Batman had instructed.

Two explosions happened where Batman had placed charges on Doomsday's shoulders, followed by two more up above where the batarangs had landed. The explosions on Doomsday caused the monster to step back slightly for a moment, but not long or far enough so that Batman would be able to get away. It was when the new debris from the roof of the palace came crashing down on top of Doomsday that he had gained the separation necessary to escape, but he still wasn't backing away. Instead he stayed there until Diana arrived. She knew what Batman was doing when she saw the debris falling the second time. Sunlight began pouring through the opening in the palace roof that Batman had created. Diana set Superman directly in the light, and in seconds Superman had come to. Unfortunately by that time Doomsday had emerged from under the rubble. Diana was right in his path, and he wasted little time in disposing of her with a mighty backhand to her face. She flew across the room and landed in a heap next to the outer wall of the throne room. Batman went to go after her, but Doomsday stepped in between him and where he was headed. The monster almost had a devilish grin on his face as he reared back to throw a violent strike that would surely be the end of Batman's life. When he came forward to strike Batman down though, Superman stepped in front and caught the punch before it could hit it's intended target. "I'm getting Diana and we have to get out of here." Batman instructed before taking off after her. Superman used his heat vision to blast Doomsday in the face, temporarily blinding the monster so that he could try and cause some serious damage to the monster before they departed.

Batman quickly knelt down next to Diana, checking her injuries momentarily. He let go of a breath he'd not realized he was holding when he noticed that she was still breathing. It was then that Batman's neck was grabbed by none other than Bane. He was lifted off the ground and Bane adjusted their position so that Batman would only be able to see his face. "Now I end you Batman." He said as he began to squeeze. The suit's armor offered much more protection this time around though. Bane was struggling to hurt him at all as the suit had energy absorbing technology which allowed it to absorb some of the power of any strikes against it. Bane was surprised by how much he was struggling despite his injuries, and Batman used that distraction to his advantage as he began punching at Bane's arm, trying to get free of the masked man's grasp. Realizing this, Bane focused back on his opponent. "So, you've made some modifications to your suit. No matter. I broke you once, and I will do it again."

"Nn….Not...this…time." Came a quiet voice from behind.

Bane turned to see Wonder Woman on her knees, but a hand was on Bane's back. Before he had a chance to do anything, she gripped and pulled causing a tube to come free from his back. Bane screamed in pain as the venom began to bleed out of his body. Soon Batman's feet were back on the ground, and at that point Batman used a chopping move to hit Bane in the elbow, forcing his arm to bend. When that happened, Batman followed that up with as strong a punch as he could manage into Bane's face, and that was enough to get Bane to release his hold on Batman's neck. Taking advantage, Batman jumped up pressing a foot against the wall to climb slightly higher, and right into a swinging roundhouse kick to Bane's head that staggered the big masked man backwards and off his feet. Batman then made a mental connection to J'onn so that the other members would know that now was the time to make their exit. Batman pulled out a trigger and pressed a button before he knelt down and picked Diana up to carry her out.

Flash was informed of the pending explosions, and he cut off his fight with the League of Assassins and scurried over to the Martian where he quickly spun his arms around to create a large wind gust that pushed Ma'alefa'ak into a wall. J'onn quickly approached his twin and landed a shot square against Ma'alefa'ak's jaw. By that time the first of the explosions started to go off, and J'onn then grabbed Flash before he flew up and out of the rooftop. Superman saw them all leaving and quickly hit Doomsday once again before following J'onn out the quickest exit they could use.

The heroes all gathered around the Javelin as the palace seemed to implode on itself. J'onn made his way over to Diana, and he checked on her vitals before looking into the white senses of Batman's cowl. "We need to get her to the Watchtower as soon as possible." He stated. "She's lost a lot of blood already."

Batman would've panicked had he only had the choice of the Javelin. "Come with me J'onn." He commanded before turning and walking away from the group. Within seconds the Batwing came into view and landed before them. Batman entered and set Diana down gently. He quickly coded in the auto pilot commands after taking off, and he reached out to anyone that might be in the Batcave. When no one answered his pages, he then called his still upset and angry Butler. Alfred did pick up, but was remaining quiet. "Alfred, you can be pissed at me any other time but I need you now more than ever."

"I already told you…" Alfred started before being interrupted.

"Diana needs you Alfred." After saying that there was a momentary silent pause.

"Very well sir." Alfred responded. "What do you need of me?"

"I need you to triangulate the Justice League frequencies that are with me here and perform a site to site transfer from the Batwing to the Watchtower medical bay."

Alfred wasted no time in hustling down to the cave teleporter where he followed Bruce's prompts and locked onto their coordinates before sending them to the requested destination. He knew then that he'd have to wait to hear how the princess fared, but prayed that she'd be alright.

As soon as the three of them were aboard the Watchtower, they began furiously working to get Diana stabilized. It was when her heart rate began to falter that J'onn had to have Bruce leave. His feelings were betraying his stoic stance, and J'onn needed to be able to concentrate on Diana's condition. Batman knew that Diana was in good hands and moved to the waiting area of the medical wing where he stood watching J'onn work through a viewing window. Something inside Batman was tearing him apart at the sight of Diana in the condition she was in, but he couldn't bring himself to walk away so that he wouldn't have to see her that way. Instead he would wait for her to wake back up not matter what. To hell with anything else until he knew that she would be alright.


	29. Chapter 29: A Heated Exchange

**Reader Beware: This chapter gets rather "heated" and is why the story is for mature audiences. You've been warned.

More than two hours had passed since J'onn had asked Batman to remove himself from the trauma area of the medical wing. The Martian was still busying himself with tending to Diana's wounds. Batman had watched through the observation window on and off during the entire time he'd been there as he had taken up pacing about the waiting area, hoping that J'onn would come out at any moment to announce that Diana would be alright. While he paced, he wondered what he could've done differently to make sure that Diana would be alright. Thinking along those lines also caused the Bat inside to question why he was placing so much emphasis on Diana. He should be more concerned with the fact that Ra's had gotten away. He didn't even stay behind to be sure that they had removed any means for Ra's to use in order to start up his plans again. On top of that, Shayera was injured as well, and Superman had certainly looked better. But they weren't Diana.

While Batman's brain bounced around all rationalizing thoughts against this strange need and desire to see Diana come back from this situation, Superman came into the waiting room along with Shayera and Flash. "Batman." Superman offered as a greeting, but he was completely ignored. "How's Diana holding up?"

"I don't know Clark." Batman responded before returning to the observation window. "What happened with Doomsday? I know that wasn't enough to have destroyed that monster, and we can't let Ra's get his hands on him again."

"The concussion blast from the explosions seemed to disrupt whatever controls Ra's had over Doomsday." Superman answered. "When he got free, he was consumed by fighting just me again. I sent him into deep space before meeting back up with everyone else here."

"Good." Batman responded while still looking through the observation window. "Hopefully he'll never be able to find his way back here."

"Do you think you could lend a hand with mending Shayera's broken arm?" Superman asked. "Besides J'onn, you have the most knowledge tending to wounds and broken bones."

"Have you even x-rayed her arm yet?" Batman asked as he spun around to face them. "How bad is it?"

Superman used his x-ray vision and looked her over. "It's the Ulna bone in her forearm. She's lucky Bane didn't crush it and the Radius at the same time."

Batman moved forward, almost grateful for the distraction. He was greatly troubled by the debate going on inside his head. He made quick work of setting her bone and putting on a cast, being vigilant to keep from disturbing J'onn when he gathered all of the necessary items to mend her arm. Once that was done, he went back to pacing and peering through the observation window. While everyone else stayed around for a while, slowly one by one the other three Justice League members eventually exited the waiting room. Batman knew that wondering around here wasn't doing anyone any good, but he still couldn't force himself to leave. He wanted to know the exact time that J'onn was finished.

Another hour passed, and there was still no word from J'onn. Batman had finally taken a seat in the waiting room. He'd not left for a single second. Perhaps his friendship with Diana was stronger than he'd realized. He'd never thought he would act this way unless it was a member of his adopted family or Alfred that was in emergency surgery. The thought of how close he felt to Diana both terrified and excited him at the same time. He wasn't sure what would become of these feelings and emotions, but he'd find a logical explanation and plan accordingly on how to handle any situation in the future, should they ever find themselves in a similar position again. Batman was caught off guard when the doors to the waiting room opened behind him and revealed someone he'd never expect to see on the Watchtower. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked the uninvited guest.

"Superman briefed me about what happened." Agent Faraday said as he approached the Dark Knight. He stopped when he was directly in front of Batman before sticking his hand out. "Forgive my manners, let me introduce myself. My name's….

"Agent Thomas Faraday, AKA King for King Faraday." Batman began to rattle off. "You're a former soldier and counter-espionage agent, as well as a former CIA and Checkmate member. You've been highly decorated for your services and recommended for any job posting that you've taken. Now you've been assigned as the Liaison between the United States and the Justice League. While some of your missions have been rather unorganized, the majority of your missions have been considered successes."

"I see you've done your homework." Faraday responded before dropping his hand to his side. He knew at that point Batman wouldn't be shaking his hand. "No sense beating around the bush then. To be honest, I'd like to get your account of what happened. Superman already gave his, and indicated that you were a large factor in everyone coming out on top."

"I played my part." Batman answered cryptically. He didn't feel like talking to this man at all. He'd been absent from the League too long apparently since they were apparently allowing civilians on board the Watchtower now. He'd have to take up that issue with Clark. Allowing outsiders on the space station that he'd paid for to be built and helped to construct, he would have thought that common courtesy would have taken place to at least make him aware of the proposed change. But he'd pursue that later as there was something else on his mind about the man standing next to him. "Don't wait up for any debriefing from me Faraday."

"Superman said that you'd be the toughest one to work with." Faraday responded. "I thought being a non-powered American male would be more willing to work with his government."

"Who said I was an American?" Batman asked defiantly. This agent was starting to get on his nerves.

"Well its either that or you've been parading the streets of Gotham City under that cowl as an illegal alien, which I highly doubt." Faraday fired back. "I guess Supes knows you better than I thought. So, how is it that Ra's al Ghul escaped the Justice League anyways?"

"He's not without his resources." Batman answered. He wasn't going to give this man any more than absolutely possible.

"That's certainly a shame that he got away." Faraday commented. "Some things are more important than catching the bad guy I suppose."

Batman turned to face the man and shot him a patented glare that would send most of Gotham's low life trash into a yellow puddle creating mess. Faraday flinched upon noticing the glare, and that caused Batman to smile on the inside. "What the hell are you trying to say?" He sneered.

Faraday nodded his head towards the observation window just off in front of the two of them. "Seems kind of obvious doesn't it?" He offered. "Diana's a special woman. The world wouldn't seem quite as bright if she weren't in it, would it?"

"No." Batman responded before turning to face the observation window again. "It wouldn't." He couldn't help but to agree with King's opinion of how Diana affected the world around her by just being a part of it.

"Plus at least I know that she wasn't just standing me up." Faraday commented as he looked through the observation window. "In our line of work, duty always has to come up first."

"Missed a meeting with the U.S. officials because of Ra's?" Batman asked. He didn't like how the conversation seemed to be turning.

"Lunch." Faraday explained. "Not business though. It was actually just going to be the two of us."

Batman felt a sharp twinge of pain in his heart upon hearing this. His cowl had been registering King's body language, and from that and his tone, it wasn't hard to tell that he was being honest and not making anything up. Diana was supposed to have met him personally for a lunch date. The thought of that irritated Batman to an almost boiling point. He needed to get away from Faraday, but he still didn't want to leave until he'd heard from J'onn on Diana's status. "I'll be sure to tell Diana you stopped by." He forced himself to say, while secretly wanting King to just leave.

"I was actually going to stick around for a bit to see how she's doing." Faraday responded.

"Diana was critically injured." Batman said as he turned completely over towards Agent Faraday. "She's not going to be able to entertain guests for quite some time." Batman took a threatening step forward and used his height to his advantage in order to press his point further. "My advice to you is to come back another time."

Agent Faraday took a couple of steps back. He knew from what Superman had told him that Batman would be difficult and intimidating to work with, and Batman certainly wasn't disappointing in that description. King did his best to hide the intimidation that he'd actually found himself to be feeling at the moment as he adjusted the collar on his shirt. It seemed to be suddenly restrictive around his neck. "Well uh…" He started before clearing his throat. "I suppose so long as I'm briefed on Diana's status, I'm sure there is something else that needs tending to. I can't wait to get the details of your account, Batman."

Bruce watched as King Faraday turned and exited the room. Batman didn't budge from his stance that he'd held over King until the exit door slid closed. When that happened he stepped over to a wall and slammed his fist into it. There was a small fist sized dent left by where he'd punched the metal wall. Bruce accepted and almost wanted to feel the pain as it kept the heat of anger towards Agent Faraday and the hurt in his heart from the forefront of his mind. Fortunately for him, there was no need to cause anymore harm to himself as J'onn entered at the opposite end of the room. "Is there anything wrong?" The Martian asked as he could sense the anger from Batman and noticed the dent in the wall.

"New visitor in the Watchtower." Batman mumbled as his anger was teetering at the moment still. "Clark never told me he'd allowed government officials aboard my space station."

"Superman was asked to bring it to our group for a vote." J'onn explained. "The United States wanted to know what was going on with us due to how powerful a force the Justice League has become. The vote was unanimous. We don't want the public to fear us, and a connection helps to humanize the League."

Batman knew that all was a valid point even though he still disagreed with the decision, but he was still upset about how he'd found out about it. But his mind quickly focused on more important matters. "How is Diana?" He asked. "Will she be alright?"

"Diana's enhanced healing will help her to recover quickly. I have her sedated at the moment as I was forced to reset many of her ribs, and she suffered a punctured lung as well as a broken jaw and nose. Surprisingly, the nose has already begun to heal. Within a day I wouldn't be surprised if you would never even be able to tell that she'd broken a bone in her face before."

Batman let loose his clenched muscles in relief that Diana was going to be alright in a short amount of time. "I'll watch over her J'onn." He stated in a manner that brooked no room for arguing.

"Very well Batman, and you may go in and see her now." J'onn responded. "Contact me when she wakes, otherwise I shall return to check on her progress periodically."

Batman didn't wait for another word to be spoken as he left the waiting area immediately marching for the recovery rooms of the medical wing. J'onn had put Diana into the nearest room, for which Batman was grateful as it saved him from having to check all the rooms before locating her. When he entered her room, Bruce was taken aback at the sight of her. Diana was all bandaged up on the side of her face as well as around the torso. Batman grabbed a chair and slid it up next to her bed where he took a seat. He knew that in time he wouldn't be able to even tell that Diana had been in a battle thanks to her healing abilities, but that still didn't change the sickening feeling at the pit of his stomach from the sight of her beaten so severely. He watched over her while keeping one eye on the monitors as though he feared she could slip away forever at any moment. He knew that it was ludicrous because of her Meta abilities, but in a situation like this, rational thought seemed to continually escape him.

~~ ten hours later ~~

Batman had stayed in the recovery room next to Diana without leaving. J'onn had come in a couple of times to check on Diana's status. It was a relief to see that there was physical evidence that her Meta healing ability had been healing her injuries. The last visit though, J'onn had altered his focus towards the Dark Knight before leaving. He'd been concerned from the knowledge that Batman hadn't slept or ate since before the battle to stop Ra's and his plans from being successful. Even though Batman declined it vehemently, J'onn was beginning to pick up the emotional attachment that Bruce had for Diana. When Batman appeared at the ready to defend his feelings as those saved for any teammate, J'onn knew better than to push forward. He merely allowed a smirk to grace his features after turning to leave once again.

Batman had barely taken his seat next to Diana again when the next unwanted visitor came into the room before shutting and locking the doors. "What are you still doing here Bruce?" Superman asked as he approached Diana's bed to look over his good friend's healing progress for himself. "You aren't doing Diana or yourself any good just sitting here."

"What I do with my free time shouldn't be of any concern to you Kent." Bruce fired back with a glare.

"Perhaps not, but your interaction with Agent Faraday earlier last night is." Clark responded. "Look Bruce, I know we voted to allow him on the Watchtower without telling you, but that doesn't give you the right as a member of the Justice League to just blow him off."

Batman stood abruptly from his chair and stomped over towards the Kryptonian. He stared him directly in the eyes before he responded. "You should have told me before you allowed him on a space station that's equipped with mostly WayneTech appliances and technology." He snarled out through clenched teeth. "I've worked too hard on protecting my identity for it to be given away just to help the opinion of the mighty Justice League among the human populous."

Superman stumbled for words upon hearing this. "Bruce, I thought you….."

"No you didn't think Clark." Bruce interrupted. "That's the problem. It's not just the image of the League that I have to be concerned with. When I'm on business for the League officially, I've toned down my reactions from how I handle Gotham. That's to protect the image we want here, but I've never done anything to potentially expose someone's real identity."

"Bruce, I'm sorry." Superman conceded. "Perhaps when Diana's healed, we can revisit the government's involvement onboard the Watchtower."

"It's too late for that Clark." Batman responded. "Whatever Faraday would have wanted, he's had weeks to attain it. Any change now would look like the League isn't cooperating with the government. Next time you want to make an irrational decision, at least come to me first so that I can let you know how dumb an idea it is first Clark."

"You know Bruce; you get a lot more cranky than normal when you've gone so long without rest." Superman said as his frustration was mounting.

"Is there anything else _important_ that you want to bring up, or just more observations of what I need?" Bruce fired back. He'd had enough of this conversation.

"I suppose not." Superman conceded. He was getting nowhere with Bruce, and he knew the situation wouldn't improve. "Just get some rest. We've needed you here with the League." Batman just stood there silently, and that was all the cue that was needed to be read into for the Man of Steel. He turned on his heels and exited Diana's recovery room. As he walked out of the infirmary, J'onn was walking in the other direction. "If you're going in Diana's room, watch out for Batman." Superman warned. "He's in one of his moods again."

J'onn stopped and turned towards his Kryptonian friend. "He is merely concerned for Diana's well being Superman." J'onn explained. "He's also not close to fully recovered himself, and is doing well in attempting to hide the amount of pain that he's enduring. I cannot say that I wouldn't feel similar if our roles were reversed."

"He wasn't even healed, and he still came out to fight?" Superman questioned for a moment. "That man is by far the most stubborn and ignorant person I've ever met. Especially when it's their own well being that's involved."

"You've known him longer than any other member of the Justice League." J'onn continued. "He always makes the hard choices no matter what it may cost him. I suspect that is what you respect the most from working alongside Batman."

Superman nodded in affirmation. "When it comes to Batman, if I were ever to fall I know that he'd continue fighting the good fight until his last breath to continue towards trying to bring world peace to Earth." He offered in explanation. "His methods are harsh, but he's never crossed the line that some think he tip toes, and I believe he never would. That's what I respect about Batman. It's just that he can be so frustrating at times with his arrogance and cold hearted tactics. It'd be nice if he'd lighten up for a change."

"But then he wouldn't be Batman." J'onn concluded. "I will be careful my friend. I can assure you I will remain mindful of his emotions. I do not wish to suffer such a headache again."

Superman smirked at hearing how Batman could actually physically give someone a headache without even touching them. "Good luck J'onn." He said before continuing out of the medical wing.

Batman was standing before J'onn even entered Diana's room. It was almost as though he knew that another visitor would be coming. When he saw that it was J'onn though, he relaxed and returned to his seat by her bed. J'onn noticed Batman's hand sitting protectively close to Diana's right hand as it rested on her bed. He turned so that Batman couldn't see the smirk that threatened to appear on his face. Instead he focused on some monitors and printed test results. He made sure to be meticulous in checking over Diana's condition. He'd need to take some new x-rays within a few more hours as he suspected that Diana's ribs he'd set during surgery were already partially mended. Her breathing seemed to be less labored, and her metabolism was surely working its way through all the medication he'd put her on. It wouldn't be long until she awoke.

"How is she J'onn?" Batman asked. The exhaustion he was dealing with could be heard on his voice clearly. J'onn hoped that Diana's progress would be good enough for Batman to at least find another bed to lie in and try to rest for some time.

"Diana seems to be mending better than expected." J'onn answered. "I suspect she will wake in the next few hours. The worst is certainly behind her at this point. I'm going to take her in for some x-rays to check on the status of her rib cage, but I have no doubts that she will be fine."

Batman's shoulders slumped slightly in relief. He knew from his own eyes that she was getting better and stronger almost by the minute. It was just a relief to hear the words from another medical expert. "Thank you J'onn." He said as he stood from his chair to stretch out a cramp in his leg.

"You should get some rest my friend." J'onn added. "I can sense the exhaustion from you."

"You too?" Batman asked incredulously.

"Superman is only concerned for your well being as much as Diana's." J'onn explained. "I'm merely doing the same. Your body requires some rest."

Batman sighed and fought off a yawn. "Perhaps you're right J'onn." He stated. "Besides, the coffee in here isn't having much of an effect on me anymore."

"You could use another medical bed if you still wish to remain here with Diana." J'onn offered. "There are plenty available."

"Why didn't I…..Nevermind." Batman started to ask before he had answered his own question in his mind. He never thought of it because of how exhausted he was. He started to look around for the nearest bed when his mind focused on a sound he barely heard.

J'onn heard it as well as his eyes were trained on Diana as well. Batman leaned in closer to Diana's face and listened intently, hoping that it wasn't his mind playing tricks on him. There were no tricks though as he heard a raspy yet still angelic voice murmuring. "B….B…Bruce." She spoke. His mind began to race. She called out his name, not Clark, J'onn, some ancient Greek or Amazon. It was his name. Hearing that both excited and terrified him.

"I shall return in another hour to check on her." J'onn said before he phased down through the floor. He was going to give them both some time and privacy. Batman's mind was racing and Diana obviously had Bruce on her mind. She was never good at hiding her thoughts and feelings from J'onn, and being unconscious did nothing to change that.

Batman started to walk away so that he could push another bed over closer to Diana's, but he was stopped by a hand that had at some point latched onto his own without him even noticing it. He must have been tired, Bruce surmised thinking how did I miss that? It was Diana's second and third words that struck him more so than the first. As Diana's lips formed the words, Bruce leaned in further, looking at her closed eyelids as if he were waiting for them to shoot open at any moment. Instead they remained closed as he was listening for what she'd say next."

"N…..n…no." She said. Bruce wondered what it was she was declining until she spoke again. "S…..st…..stay." She finished.

"As you wish Princess." Bruce said before gently sitting and then lying on the bed next to her. Meta or not, he remained careful and mindful to be sure not to cause her any undue injuries. He watched over her for any further responses, but when nothing happened he finally allowed his eyes to shut and slumber quickly came to him.

~~ Sometime later ~~

Diana was sitting up in her bed as J'onn checked over her for what felt like the umpteenth time. She was growing frustrated at being confined to the medical bed and was ready to leave the medical wing. She was quite anxious for her life to return to normal as she'd been mandated to stay in bed at the medical wing until J'onn and Batman had cleared her to leave. She was pleasantly surprised that Batman had been up so often to see her. Something seemed to be different about him. She wasn't sure what, but she couldn't believe now that she'd even considered going to lunch with Agent Faraday when she was simply more interested in Bruce.

J'onn looked over to her as he just finished with his examination. "You have my approval to return to normal activity, but I would prefer you wait another week before returning to full active status on missions." He said.

"Thank you J'onn." Diana responded with an appreciative smile.

"Don't thank me yet Diana." J'onn countered. "You've still yet to gain Batman's sign off on your return."

The smile instantly left her lips at the thought of trying to convince Bruce that she was ready for a full return. That would be next to impossible. She was still sore from the ribs that hadn't fully mended yet, and she knew that he would figure it out even if she hid it well. He somehow seemed to deduce everything, and in this instance it would leave her infuriated and disappointed. At that moment the man in her thoughts walked into the room.

"Good morning princess." Batman offered in greeting. "How is her progress J'onn?" He asked as he turned his attention to J'onn while picking up her medical chart at the end of her bed.

"She has received my approval to return to normal activity." J'onn answered before turning to leave the room so that Batman could run or rerun any tests that he felt necessary.

Diana watched Batman intently as he read through her chart with all the updates J'onn had added. When he finished with the chart, he returned it to the foot of her bed before moving over to review the monitor readouts for any abnormalities. It wasn't until he took her blood pressure that he spoke again. "Your heart rate and blood pressure have been normal for a few days now." He explained before leaning in closer to her as he reached for the electrodes on her chest before removing them.

Diana's eyes went from the white lenses of his cowl to where his hand traveled to each electrode. She felt a slight heat fill her where the gauntlet covered hand grazed her skin as he gently removed each electrode. It was a strange feeling that she'd never had before, especially from a man. Just before he removed the last electrode, she looked back up to his face to see a small smirk showing across his lips. Diana's cheeks turned a slight pink hue in embarrassment from having such a reaction just because of another's touch. "Something wrong Princess?" Bruce asked in an almost teasing tone. "You seem flustered."

"Just…..anxious to be released from the medical quarters." Diana came up with as an answer.

Bruce then removed a gauntlet and glove before placing two fingers on Diana's neck as his face came a little closer to hers. Diana's breath caught from experiencing the closeness as Bruce was moving ever closer to her. "Your pulse has increased Diana." He said softly. "Perhaps you're not quite ready to leave where your vitals wouldn't still be closely monitored."

Diana would have been deeply disappointed, but she could make out the teasing and testing nature behind Bruce's voice. She had to think of a retort quickly to make sure he wouldn't mandate that she remain in the medical wing just in case he were serious. "What if I were to do something to prove I'm ready to be released?" She asked.

"And just what would that be?" Bruce asked as he removed his fingers from her neck.

She made a quick move and grabbed that hand before he could completely remove it. She didn't know what was coming over her, but she was intrigued and excited about the feelings swarming within her. She gently pulled on his right hand that she'd grabbed with her left in order to bring him closer. When his face was directly in front of hers, she made a suggestion. "Best two out of three falls?"

Bruce glanced down at Diana's lips for a moment. "No sparring yet Princess." He declined.

"Then how about this?" Diana asked as she reached her free hand up, cupping the back of Bruce's cowl covered head and pulling him the rest of the way until their lips met. It was warm and soft at first. Bruce seemed to be taken by surprise that Diana actually went through with kissing him. Diana could read that as she felt him attempting to pull away for a split second before he began to respond. Slowly he parted his lips and allowed his tongue to graze against her lips, as if asking permission for entrance. Diana loved the feel of his tongue and lips against hers, and when she opened her lips allowing him access, she was almost overwhelmed by the lust filled feeling that came once his tongue began a dance for control with hers. She gasped slightly as she felt Bruce's left hand dancing along the edge of her medical gown by her chest. The excitement she was feeling at this moment was astonishing as well as breath taking. She'd never felt anything close to this aside from being in the heat of battle, and those two things were at opposite ends of the spectrum as far as she was concerned.

Finally the need for air forced them to end the kiss, and each of them were left panting and trying to catch their breath. Diana was slightly taken aback when Bruce seemed to be pulling away until she realized that he was unlocking and removing his cape and cowl so that she could look deep into his dark blue eyes before he returned to kissing her again. Diana's hands moved almost of their own accord as she placed one hand on the side of his cheek while the other slid around to the back of his neck where her fingers began to weave through his hair. She moaned a little as she felt Bruce's free hand slide down to her hips and she kicked the blankets off of her to grant him more access even though the kicking motion caused some additional pain to her rib cage area. The pain however quickly vanished in the heat of the moment as Bruce began kissing his way across her cheek and onto her neck before leaving a moist trail of kisses up towards her ear. "This could complicate things." He softly whispered into her ear. The breath that came with his words sent a chill down her spine. "Are you sure about this?"

Diana used her hands to guide Bruce's face back in front of hers. "I'd stop you if I weren't sure." She stated before sitting up to engage in another kiss. This one was more heated than before. Bruce seemed to ease upon hearing her declaration as he took his hands and gently placed them on each side of her face to help keep her sitting up. He slowly sat down on the bed directly in front of her, never allowing his lips to leave hers while he moved. His hands slowly slid down her arms, the backs of his knuckles barely grazing her skin the entire time before he moved them to her sides and gently pulled her closer to him. Diana moved willingly as she wanted to be as close as possible, and positioned herself to where she was now straddling him. She felt the air against her back from where the gown was partially opened, and then felt Bruce's hands move as they worked to untie the gown as he once again began a trail of kisses along her neck to her ear. Upon reaching it, he assaulted her ear with warm and moist kisses, gently breathing hot breaths on her ear in between each kiss. Diana quickly was losing her composure as she found that she now wanted this man to make love to her. It was such a strange feeling to want a man like that , but was definitely a welcomed one she found. Wanting to increase the pace and see just how pleasurable other pursuits might be, she moved her hands to her gown and ripped it away before tossing it to the ground.

Batman returned to kissing Diana on the lips once again as he took her hands and led them to the areas where the releases on the Batsuit were hidden. She was deeply enjoying him giving her that level of trust as his fingers showed hers how to disengage the locking mechanisms. When the torso of the suit was unlocked, Bruce backed away and Diana helped him to remove that part of the suit. She looked on in awe at the sculpted upper body of Bruce. He'd trained and worked until his body was comparable to that of a god's, and while she was thoroughly enjoying the view, she still desired more as she allowed her fingers to do the talking for her by playing with the waistline of the suit. Bruce took the not so subtle hint and helped the both of them to stand so that he could remove the lower half of his suit. They returned to the bed when both of them were finally there simply in all their glory for each other to view and appreciate. Even with the almost healed bruising, Diana was still a goddess and the most beautiful woman Bruce had laid eyes on. While they could spend an eternity just enjoying the view under normal circumstances, everything they'd just done a few moments before had heated their blood to the point where they didn't want to keep their hands off of each other any longer. While she knew that Bruce had the experience to know what to do, Diana found that her hands seemed to instinctually know where to go as well as she gently grasped him and began to slowly move in a stroking pattern. That part of Bruce became increasingly harder with each stroke while his hands also moved, one behind her head to help ease the descent back onto the bed while the fingers of his other hand began to lightly trace a circular pattern around the nipple of Diana's left breast, causing it to form into a tight pink bud. Almost as soon as her back landed on the bed, she arched up pressing her chest more into his one hand. She would have to thank Aphrodite for the instinctual knowledge she'd apparently been blessed with.

Diana was greatly surprised by Bruce's next move as his mouth quickly descended onto her other breast, where his tongue flicked lightly causing another tight pink bud. She whimpered his name as she fought to keep from moaning in pleasure from his touch. When Bruce's hand left her breast and traced downwards before reaching its destination between her legs however, the ability to hold in the moan was lost to her. She grabbed Bruce's hair on the back of his head as she fought for what little control she had left when his fingers gently slid inside of her and began to move within her in a most pleasurable way. "Oh gods, Bruce." She almost yelled as she felt an explosion inside of her growing.

Bruce felt Diana become rigid underneath him, and he slowed to a stop before looking up into Diana's face. She was panting and trying to regain control of her senses, but she had a deep amount of lust showing in her eyes at the same time almost begging him to continue. He still wanted permission though as he refused to do anything she wouldn't be comfortable with. "Are you sure you want to keep going Diana?" He asked again.

Diana bit her bottom lip as she wasn't sure she'd be able to form coherent words in response, and nodded her head. She watched as Bruce then kissed his way down her abdomen before moving to kiss a little harder against her hips. At the feel of that, Diana slammed her head down onto the pillow and began to writhe underneath him. She thought things couldn't get better than this point until Bruce positioned himself and removed his hand from between her legs before replacing it with his lips and tongue. He lapped up the sweet tangy taste of Diana as she opened her mouth to scream in pleasure but no noise came out. He could feel her body tightening underneath him even more as he knew that she was getting closer and closer. That motivated him to push her over the edge as a hand snaked up to her breasts, and massaged it while simultaneously attacking her tight pink buds intermittently. Diana's hands grasped the bedsides tightly as Bruce gave her pleasures she'd never have thought possible before now. She felt herself lose total control as the explosion suddenly came about shaking her to her core. This time when her mouth opened, she screamed Bruce's name as her hands reached down to each side of his head and pulled him up. Her body was shaking uncontrollably and she couldn't take any more torture from this man. She needed to feel him inside of her, and she helped him position himself to do so as his tip grazed against her sopping wet folds. She held her breath and closed her eyes as she felt the thickness begin to penetrate her. When he'd buried himself deep within her, Diana gasped and her eyes flew open widely as she seemed to lose the ability to breathe.


	30. Chapter 30: A Mission Renewed

Diana sat up abruptly trying to catch her breath. She was extremely flustered from what had just happened. Her injured ribs were affecting her ability to take deep breaths so that she could compose herself. She absentmindedly placed a hand onto her chest, and then it occurred to her that there was a hospital gown covering her. She slowly lowered her head in disbelief, but received all the confirmation that she needed with her own eyes as there was still a hospital gown on her. Had what happened been real. She'd never experienced something so intimate and breathtaking before, it had to be real. It was then that her ears began to function around her once again as she could make out someone speaking to her.

"Diana, are you alright?" Bruce asked her in a deeply concerned voice. He'd fallen asleep next to her when she'd refused to release his hand. The feel of her sitting up abruptly was enough to stir him from his slumber and Bruce's mind went straight to worry for Diana. He never anticipated her shooting up awake so quickly. He could see how flustered she was as she fought to regain her composure. It was then that Diana seemed to become more aware of her surroundings, and more specifically that she wasn't alone in her bed. They both glanced down at their still joined hands before each of them instantly pulled away as if they had been burned. Diana's cheeks quickly turned a bright shade of pink and Batman quickly climbed off the bed and turned towards the exit. "I'll get J'onn." He said in an attempt to avoid the awkwardness.

Diana raised a hand and wanted to call out to Bruce in order to get him to stop from leaving, but her voice seemed to be gone as no words came out. She tried clearing her throat and finally received a raspy response, but by then it was entirely too late as Batman was already long gone. She had so many questions on her mind at the moment. She didn't understand what had happened. Was it a dream? It felt so real though, how could it have been a dream? Had Morpheus and Aphrodite concocted the wonderfully sinful happening inside her own mind? Why was it Bruce that she was with? All these questions about what was likely to be a very important and intimate moment that only happened in her head, but then there were the questions regarding Bruce being right beside her on her medical bed. What was he doing there and how long had he actually stayed at her side? She also wanted to know what happened with the mission, and how the rest of the team was doing. She knew from what happened in her dream that she needed to talk to Bruce, but how would she approach something like that? Just knowing that he was beside her when she woke up was enough to cause the heat in her cheeks to rise again.

She received a slight reprieve when J'onn entered her room. "Welcome back Diana." He greeted. "We were all concerned about you."

"Well, as you can see J'onn, I'm going to be just fine." Diana responded as she worked to regain her composure.

"Are you so sure?" J'onn asked. "I don't mean to intrude, but your feelings and thoughts are running rather rampant."

"I….I'm sorry J'onn." Diana said as she lowered her head. "I believe that I just experienced a vivid dream. A very, vivid and powerful dream. I wasn't even certain that it was a dream for a few moments. It seemed so real."

"Would you care to discuss this dream?" J'onn offered.

Diana knew that J'onn would be the one to help hash out what had happened in her head. But before that she was also curious about the person that had been at the forefront of her dream. "Yes J'onn but first I need to ask you something." She said, and when J'onn motioned for her to continue on, she did. "Do you know what Batman was doing sitting next to me in my medical bed?"

"Did Batman not tell you himself?" J'onn asked. He could almost sense the foolishness and fear that crept up inside of Bruce's mind. It wouldn't be surprising in the least for him to have kept Diana in the dark about his feelings. Diana looked dumbfounded and confused by his question. "No. That wouldn't be like him to divulge regarding such things I suppose."

"Since Batman likely won't ever let me know the reason for him being in my bed, perhaps you could enlighten me." Diana prodded for the answer. She knew that J'onn was aware of what was going on, and she wanted to know herself. She felt that she had a right to know. "Please J'onn."

J'onn gave Diana a look that would have been misconstrued as filled with pity from anyone else, but she knew that he was silently debating what he should be willing to tell. J'onn moved a little closer to her bedside and knelt down so that they were eye level. "Security code J'onn-Lima-Alpha-Charlie-17-29-Bravo. Security override camera feed and medical wing recovery quarter door locks."

Diana glanced around as she heard the cameras winding down and the locks on the doors all clicking. "What was that about?" She asked.

"Batman seems to have a way of knowing everything that happens within the Watchtower." J'onn explained. "Surveillance and barging in at compromising times seems to be a talent that he has perfected. Now he will know that something happened, but not what."

"A mystery like that would probably drive him crazy until he uncovers the truth about what happened." Diana surmised with a smile gracing her still somewhat bruised faced. There was still some considerable pain from where her jaw had been broken, but by now it had begun to heal enough where J'onn knew better than to wire it shut. She rubbed her jaw to help ease the pain as she waited for J'onn to offer his explanation about the medical bed situation.

After making certain that Batman was nowhere to be found, J'onn returned his eye level position with Diana's. "Batman has been here at your side ever since we returned to the Watchtower." J'onn said as he started to tell the story. "Twelve hours after we arrived and I had treated your wounds, he was already struggling with exhaustion and was finally willing to think about resting after some prodding from both Superman and I. However I knew that he wasn't about to leave, and suggested that he move a bed next to yours to rest. It was then that you seemed to come to, almost as though you'd been an observer to the conversation and wanted to join in. Then you grabbed hold of his hand when we heard you saying his name."

"I did?" She asked with a surprising hint in her tone. She wasn't aware of any of this happening.

J'onn nodded his head and continued. "When I came in again to check on you, he had been sleeping next to you, and you had yet to release his hand. He woke and explained to me that you hadn't let go since shortly after I had left the two of you alone, which had been almost two hours by then. He then spent the next three days at your side, rarely allowing himself to lie next to you so he could sleep for an hour here and there until you woke up this evening."

"Three days!?" Diana exclaimed. She didn't know she had lost so much time. Then she fell silent as another notion came to her. Bruce had been there the entire time. Had he done something to trigger her dream? Perhaps an inappropriate touch here or there? No she concluded. Some other men would do such a thing, but not Bruce. She just knew that he would respect her enough to only be there out of support, and perhaps if she were special enough to him, also because he cared for her.

J'onn seemed to read her like a book. "Batman was greatly concerned for you." He said. "The only times I was aware of his thoughts not being on you were when Agent Faraday tried to reach out to him for a briefing of his account during the mission. That was…. Not an entirely pleasant visit. Since then Superman and Batman have been involved in, rather heated conversations to say the least. I'm afraid that he holds our Kryptonian friend responsible for Faraday being permitted aboard the Watchtower."

Hearing that caused Diana to run a hand through her raven hair as she scrunched her nose while trying to remember something that she was supposed to have done, and then suddenly it came rushing back to her. She had agreed to a lunch date with Agent Faraday just a day after she'd stormed out of the Manor when Bruce had left her extremely frustrated and angered from his immediate dismissal of her attempt to help with Bane. It was just supposed to be an innocent lunch between colleagues. Something that she'd done with League members like Flash, J'onn, and Kal. "I assume Batman didn't appreciate the approach King took with him." Diana guessed.

"That would be an understatement." J'onn responded. "Meeting Agent Faraday was how Batman discovered his status and access levels."

"That should certainly make staff meetings more interesting in the least." Diana commented with a small smile before turning serious again. "Now that we've gotten that out of the way, I need to gain an understanding about this dream that I experienced J'onn. I hoped that you would be able to help me."

"I will do what I can." J'onn replied. "Please continue."

Diana started trying to describe the happenings of her dream, but after becoming rather embarrassed while giving her description, she asked J'onn to probe her mind to discover the rest of the details. She thought that perhaps that would give him a better and more accurate account of what happened rather than her trying to recall the details. She looked into his glowing orange eyes as she patiently waited for him to locate what he was looking for and help to resolve any confusion. She was about to try and reach out to him in her mind when the orange glow left his eyes and he looked back at her. "I've found the details of your dream Diana." He said. "I do have a question or two for you before I let you know of my thoughts on this."

J'onn quickly set up a telepathic link between the two of them and reached out to Diana, asking her to close her eyes. Upon closing her eyes, Diana seemed to be viewing herself on the medical bed and Batman at the foot of it with her medical chart in his hands. Neither of them were moving as though time for them had stopped. _What's going on?_ She asked mentally.

_I've brought you into the memories of your dream Diana._ J'onn said as an image of him appeared next to her. _Inside your mind, it will be easier for you to recall anything that happened during the dream as well as outside it._

_I understand J'onn._ Diana replied. _I'm ready to continue when you are._

After saying that, the two heroes watched as the dream versions of Batman and Diana interacted just as they had during Diana's actual dream. When Batman moved to take dream Diana's blood pressure, J'onn paused the dream versions again. _I need you to think Diana._He instructed. _Do you recall Batman making contact with your body at any point during this moment?_

_No, nothing J'onn._ She answered after giving it some thought.

_Batman had never stopped holding your hand, even before you were experiencing this dream._ J'onn responded. _I've determined from this, that Batman didn't have an impact that caused this dream to occur._

_It had to be some outside force though J'onn._ Diana half argued. _I've never experienced something so vivid and…. And… well…vivid. Perhaps there was some intervention by my Gods_? She suggested.

_I'm afraid not Diana._ J'onn answered. _I sense no other influence that would be the cause of such a dream. I do not believe that any being, God or no, has intervened to have caused this. I believe that it came purely from the recesses of your mind._

_But…..how? Why did this happen then?"_She asked. _I've never experienced anything like this before._

_That, you will have to discover on your own._ J'onn responded. _Although perhaps Batman would be willing and able to help you to discover the root of this dream._

_Able yes, willing no._ Diana grimly thought to herself before realizing that J'onn was still connected to her mind.

_You might be surprised Diana._ He said before breaking the telepathic link between the two of them.

Diana slowly opened her eyes to find that she was on the medical bed by herself once again with J'onn standing next to her. Her mind quickly began to race again with questions. How would she approach Bruce about the dream? Should she just keep it to herself? She was still confused about what to make of even thinking or dreaming about a man in such a manner. It was completely against what she'd been taught growing up.

"If I may add one more word of advice Diana." J'onn offered as he could still sense the turmoil going on around her thoughts. He sat down next to her and when she looked into his eyes, he continued. "You don't have to divulge this information today, tomorrow, or even a week from now. This is not a battle where action or confrontation should be immediate. Take your time and seek out your feelings. When you are at peace with your decision is when you should act. Also, when you are ready, I have already signed off on your release from the medical wing. You are free to return to your personal quarters, and I will schedule an evaluation next week for you to return to active mission status."

"Thank you J'onn." Diana replied with a warm smile. "You've been a great help." She sat there in her medical bed for a few moments until J'onn left before she removed the covers and slid her legs over the side of the bed. She looked down at her feet, still sifting through the thoughts about what to do. She wanted to see Bruce, but at the same time she didn't. These feelings of attraction that had sprouted up from the dream left her rattled still. One revelation was that she needed to consult with her patron Goddesses and Gods, and perhaps her mother as well about what should be done. She decided that she wanted to do at least one of those things before she ran into Bruce again, and with that thought in her mind she quickly located and changed into her armor before leaving the medical wing in the direction of her personal quarters. Inside there was an altar that she would use as a means to reach out to her Gods and Goddesses.

Little did she know that no sooner than when Bruce had made contact with J'onn to inform him of Diana's waking up, he'd then immediately went straight to the teleporters and off of the Watchtower. He too had a lot on his mind to go through, not to mention that the Joker was still out there on the loose. He also needed to get back to strength training and physical therapy as he was still nowhere near back to 100% health. He also wanted to do a little more digging into the areas of the government that Agent Faraday had involvement with. He wanted to know what all of the main objectives were for Faraday aside from being the liaison between the U.S. Government and the Justice League. His own secret identity demanded no less as many of the people that he loved could potentially be at risk if anyone were to discover that Bruce Wayne was indeed Batman.

~~ Two weeks later ~~

"I first want to welcome Wonder Woman back to active status." Superman proclaimed as the beginning announcements for the status meeting. Even though she'd been technically back for almost six days by the time the meeting had taken place, Diana was appreciative of the gesture. It kind of brought a sense of her return as being official. She looked around the room to see the warm smiles from her comrades in arms. It wasn't until her eyes fell upon the empty seat to her right that she felt a little morose. Batman wasn't in attendance. She hadn't seen him since she woke up and found him in her bed next to her. She even missed him when he was on monitor duty. She had waited until his shift to go to see him, but when she entered, instead of Batman, Flash was sitting at the desk. Batman had willingly swapped with Flash so that he could go out with a date in Central City. Diana had neglected to pay attention to the twenty-four hour schedule as it had the changes listed on it rather than the weekly schedule. Flash was supposed to have the shift just before Batman's, but Batman accepted Flash's request to swap with no argument at all. Before he'd been unwilling to swap shifts with anyone for monitor duty.

It was slightly disheartening to Diana as she had already reached out in prayer to her Goddesses for enlightenment about her dream. Aphrodite had claimed innocence when Athena accused her of meddling with Morpheus to put such thoughts into the Amazon champion's head, even just in the form of a dream. Diana couldn't have been sure, but she thought she noticed Aphrodite winking at her when Athena wasn't looking. After speaking with her Goddesses, Diana had chosen not to bring her mother into the loop about the dream. She was afraid that Hippolyta would simply blame the unfortunate and innocent male that was in Diana's dream as the culprit and have him castrated and hung for any treachery she'd deemed him guilty of. Although Diana was sure that Bruce would be a lot more than her mother had bargained for in confining, she chose to maintain the peace by remaining silent on this one instance with her mother.

After a few days without seeing Batman, Diana decided to utilize some of her own monitor duty time and reviewed the security footage of the Watchtower medical wing as well as the mission reports regarding what happened to Ra's and his plan. Watching the videos only confirmed what she already believed to be true. Batman had never left her side, and more importantly never infringed upon her innocence. She also saw the confrontation between both Batman and Agent Faraday as well as with Batman and Superman. While there was no audio to go off of, but she could plainly make out the confrontational stature of both meetings based solely on body language. She couldn't help but to smile a little upon seeing that even Superman's posture seemed to cower ever so slightly when Batman stood tall and firm. But something still had not sat right with Diana over Batman being absent for such a long time. She'd received congratulations and offers of lunch or breakfast as time to catch up with each member of the Justice League, and even received a second opportunity to go out with Agent Faraday again. It was something she told him that she would think about as a response. She felt that Agent Faraday was a good man, but she didn't want to do anything that would give him the implication of romantic interest as it just didn't exist for her when it came to him. Without the dream to fall back on, she wouldn't have known what that interest felt like, and that was why she'd originally agreed upon the lunch date. Now she felt like she should be more careful about what types of meetings to accept from anyone, but especially with men.

Thinking about Diana's interactions with Agent Faraday seemed to fall in line with the topics of the status meetings as Superman continued progressing through each topic on his agenda. "I hope_ almost_ everyone's had a chance to get acclimated with Agent King Faraday." He said. "His superiors have approached him about being added to this status meeting that we hold going forward. I'm sure it's just to stay on top of our findings during missions, but I'm not convinced this is an approach that we should permit."

"I'm sure Bats won't vote for this one." Flash whispered to Shayera in a joking manner which earned him an elbow from the Thanagarian in the arm.

Superman sighed before rising from his seat. He was looking down at the table just in front of him where he placed his hands as he leaned over slightly. "I suppose there's no sense in hiding this from anyone." He said before looking up and at each League member as he continued. "Everyone's aware that Batman was less than pleased about Agent Faraday being permitted onboard the Watchtower. All of you know already how paranoid he can tend to be, especially when it comes to decisions being made without his knowing of them." That caused a snicker to come from Flash's direction followed by another elbow shot to the arm. "Now normally I'd chalk this up to just paranoia, but Batman did bring up some specific points that are very valid, and that's why I'm hesitant to allow any more access than what we've already granted Faraday and the government."

"What points did Batman make Kal?" Diana asked.

"That Faraday's being here could and likely would in time compromise at least one if not all of our secret identities, and I'm officially moving that the liaison role be removed effective immediately." Batman said from the doorway, causing everyone to jump and look in his direction.

"I thought you said that we shouldn't take that route to remove him completely." Superman recalled.

Batman marched straight over to his seat before inserting a USB drive into one of the conference table ports before typing in his password to grant access to the drive. All of a sudden, 3D images appeared above the table showing multitudes of files. He clicked on the first file, which caused pages to open into view showing all the details on Agent Faraday. "I did, but I've done some research on Agent Faraday and his position as liaison since then. As you can see here, Faraday's record is quite impressive as well as large for a man of his age. He's been involved in a variety of projects, most having been extremely successful or at the very least fruitful."

"So are you saying that he's deviated from that honorable distinction?" Shayera asked.

"No." Batman answered before closing that file and opening another regarding the liaison position itself. "He's innocent and so is the position that he's filled."

"Then what's the problem?" Flash asked.

"The _problem_ is that there are other agencies that are using the role he's been granted as a means to study us." Batman answered again as he closed the liaison file and opened all of the other files but one. They all contained some informational data on each of the six members of the Justice League, including images of them while training and conversing in different areas of the Watchtower as well as out in public on Earth. Batman's file held the least information to the surprise of no one whereas certain members such as John Stewart contained a plethora of information. "As you can see they've already gotten a head start on each one of us."

Batman closed all the files after giving each of them ample time to review what information had been gathered on them. Superman and Flash each blew sighs of relief at discovering that their identities were safe for the time being. But that only brought their minds back to the question that Batman had left hanging. "Who would do this?" Superman asked.

It was then that Batman opened the last file. He let them look long and hard, seeing if anyone would react. When no one did, he spoke. "I don't know who _they_ are. They've covered their tracks well, and it's been difficult to make any headway. Each time I find a money trail, it turns into another dead end. Regardless of who's behind it, we need to end their line of information off NOW."

Everyone looked around in silence for a moment before Flash raised his hand. "I want to make a motion that Batman's request for the liaison position to be removed effective immediately." He said.

Superman didn't even hesitate. "Seconded." He called out.

"Shall we put it to a vote then?" J'onn asked. "All for the removal of the liaison position." He waited and counted each raised hand. "All opposed." He announced before counting again. "The vote stands in favor that the position of liaison be removed by a count of four to two."

J'onn had abstained from the vote as he tallied the totals instead. Should the need have come, he'd have served as the tie breaker. Shayera and Diana were the only two that didn't vote in favor. "I just think that we should use this to our advantage and backtrack until we find out who's behind it all." Shayera explained.

"I agree." Diana stated. "Besides, you said it yourself that Agent Faraday has been an honorable man. Perhaps he could help us discover the persons behind this if we involved him as well."

"Too dangerous Diana." Batman added.

"He's right." Superman concurred. "Those of us with secret identities use those lives to protect our loved ones from retribution to get back at us. We can't allow that if we can help it at all."

"I understand Kal, really I do." Diana replied. "But we're giving up our one lead on finding out who these people are and what their goals are as well."

"No, princess. We're not." Batman chimed in before looking up at the clock and turning towards the door. "We're forcing their hand."

The meeting unofficially adjourned as everyone followed Batman out of the conference room where he headed straight to the teleporter room. Everyone filed in and only had to wait about thirty seconds before the teleporter activated and a figure appeared from the bright light before revealing Agent Faraday. "Well Batman, I'm glad that….you…came….around." King said as he took notice of all the League members standing there before him. "I…..suppose this isn't the briefing that I wanted from you is it?"

"Not quite." Batman said as he pulled an envelope out from under his cape while he walked up to King. "We've voted. You're position as liaison has been removed effective immediately."

"You can't be serious." King responded while looking over the shoulder of Batman at Superman and the rest of the League. When he saw the stern looks from each member, he knew that Batman had gotten his way. "I'm sure the public won't be very happy to hear that you aren't working with its government." He said as a last ditch effort to change their minds.

"I'm going to need your access card and communicator." Batman said as he held out a hand expectantly waiting for the items to be placed there.

"This is asinine." King said as he pulled out the card and communicator before handing them over. "I thought we were working to build trust."

"We were trusting." Superman said.

Batman entered some codes into the teleporter controls before stepping up next to King and leaning in next to his ear. He pulled out on one of the sides of King's suit jacket and stuffed the envelope into the inner pocket before he whispered his command. "As your last act as liaison between the Justice League and the United States government, hand this envelope over to your superiors along with this message." Batman quietly said, but loud enough for the entire League behind him to hear clearly. "Check. It's your move."

Batman padded onto the jacket a couple times for emphasis before taking two steps back away from the bewildered Agent Faraday and pressing the button to engage the teleporter. When Agent Faraday disappeared from view, the League members began to disperse, but Diana stood there waiting for Batman to turn towards the door and her. She watched with her hands placed on her hips as Batman returned to the teleporter controls and began to type in various commands. She was beginning to wonder if Bruce was actually going to try and escape back to his cave without even speaking to her. "Something on your mind Princess?" He asked, ending that line of thought from her.

"I haven't seen you since I woke up." Diana commented as she moved over towards him. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think that you were trying to avoid me Bruce."

"On the Watchtower, I can't be addressed like that Diana." Batman said as he turned his head slightly to face her. "Even though I said Faraday was innocent, that doesn't mean he didn't provide the means for someone else to keep tabs on us. I have to go through everything onboard to be sure there isn't any possibility of leaks finding their way into the wrong hands."

"Fair enough, but you still haven't addressed your absence and avoidance of me, and please don't insult my intelligence by saying you weren't avoiding me." Diana fired back as she noticed the subtle change of conversation that he'd attempted.

Batman's typing ceased at that moment as he gave her his full attention. "Between the damage Bane's caused as well as the Joker still being on the loose and my having to go through new access permissions being granted to outsiders, I've been just a little busy princess." He responded.

"Oh." Diana said. She had half expected an answer like that from him, but it didn't remove the sting that she felt upon actually hearing it. She wanted to keep him talking though as she was still feeling out what was going on inside her head about Bruce and her level of interest in him. Was he just a colleague, friend, or did she desire something more about that man? She thought quickly of a topic to use to keep him from leaving and immediately focused on work. "I've almost caught up on everything that I missed. I even had a chance to read your log. I'm a little confused though on one part."

"And what part is that?" Batman asked.

"You said in your report that you were confronted by Ra's and Talia al Ghul when you were looking for Shayera and John and placing explosives throughout the palace." Diana replied. "Yet I read that they actually escaped. How did they get away if it was just you and them in a hallway?"

"You were in trouble." Batman explained. "I made a judgment call and let them get away so that I could help Superman, J'onn, and you."

"But Batman, we all know the risks that come with being a member of the Justice League." Diana said. She didn't like finding out that Bruce had allowed Ra's to escape so easily. "I didn't need you to save me; I needed you to stop …."

Batman interrupted her at that point. "If it weren't for my decision, you wouldn't even be here right now. None of you would be."

"It would've been an honorable death." Diana countered. She had become increasingly irritated at that point. Had he stayed with her all that time because he thought of her as weak? She certainly wouldn't let him make that mistake twice. "We Amazons have been trained since birth to battle and die if need be with honor. Sometimes I think all of you men are so hardheaded that you don't think about the long term repercussions. Ra's can come back with another terrible plan to cripple the world and perhaps then we won't be able to stop him. Next time; remember that I'm an Amazon; we're prepared from birth to give our lives in battle if needed for the greater good. I knew what the consequences were going into this mission, and I'll not be treated like some damsel in distress."

Batman had heard just about enough about his choices. "There's nothing honorable about dying needlessly, and that's what would have happened." He replied with the anger evident in his voice. "And I didn't save you because I thought you were a damsel in distress. I saved you because…." He trailed off sighing in frustration and turned away from her.

Diana saw the change from anger to something she'd not seen in Batman's posture before. It concerned her a little to see that. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, wanting to give him her strength. "Then why Bruce? She asked. She needed to know. "You should have worried about saving the world instead of me, or Kal, or J'onn."

Batman finished punching in the codes and walked out of her grip on his shoulder and onto the teleporter pad. "Maybe I figured the world's not worth saving if you weren't in it." He answered before looking up into her soft blue eyes. "After all, the world needs Wonder Woman, Superman, and the Martian Manhunter. In the same situation, I'd do it again."

Diana wasn't buying Bruce's attempt to deflect some of his focus onto their other two comrades. "I suppose I understand." Diana responded. Be safe in Gotham, and don't try to avoid me here anymore." She said before engaging the teleporter with a pleasant smile on her face.

Bruce smirked in return and added just before disappearing in the blinding white light. "It's good to have you back Princess." It was at that moment she found out what she needed. Bruce was worth pursuing, and she decided then that she would be doing so.

~~ Government Offices ~~

A government official was running through the hallways of a complex with a folder tucked firmly under his arm. He made a left turn into a section of the building that was blocked off with caution tape over numerous doors. He eventually ended up at one door towards the middle of the hallway, which turned out to be an elevator instead. The man fidgeted as he waited for the doors to open. When the elevator finally came to a stop, he quickly exited and headed straight to an office at the end of the row. Once inside the office, the man removed the file from under his arm and tossed it gently on top of the desk, and the person behind the desk looked at the now opened folder. "What do they know aside from the title of our organizational group?" The person at the desk asked before setting the open file down and revealing the page with the name "CADMUS" on it.


End file.
